Double Life
by Ziek Aramaik
Summary: A world where Peter has a split personality. Cancelled.
1. Crazy Day pt1

_**Crazy Day in the City, Part 1: Spidey Returns**_

A teenage boy with messy brown hair bounded onto the sidewalk.

"Hello, New York!" He smiled broadly. "So THIS is what the place looks like when it's not past midnight. Now I see what all the fuss is about."

He gestured to the countless pedestrians. "Listen to the noise of the crowd!"

He looked up at the sky. "Feel that blazing hot sun!"

He took a deep breath. "Smell that photochemical smog!"

The young man jumped onto the pedestrian cross signal and hung off by one arm. He looked like the man from _Singing in the Rain_. "This is how the city was meant to be experienced! Night and day are like entirely different worlds! I can't believe I was missing out all this time! It makes me want to-"

"SHUT UP!" Gwen grabbed him by the shirt and made him crash onto the pavement - hard. "You're embarrassing us!"

"No one's gonna care. They're New Yorkers," he said from his new spot.

"Aw, calm down, Gwen," Mary Jane told her blond best friend. "He's just excited. No harm done. Let him do what he wants."

"Peter asked us to supervise him," Gwen dryly replied. "'Let him do whatever he wants' is NOT supervision."

The person who wore Peter's clothes, face, and body stood up and stretched his arms. "Pete should have more faith in me. I promised to take care of our body, didn't I? It's not like I'm gonna do anything crazy or stupid... Oh look, a tattoo parlor."

"DON'T EVEN THINK IT!"

"SOME PEOPLE can recognize a joke when they hear it, you uptight old battleaxe!"

"How am I old?"

"THAT'S the part that offends you?"

"Don't dodge the question!"

"I called you old because you're an old hag in training, you old hag!"

"I guess that makes you the unruly brat!"

For the first time, a passerby noticed them. But what he said was, "How cute. A lover's quarrel."

Gwen and her enemy, in perfect unison, replied, "IT'S NOT A LOVER'S QUARREL!" Throughout all of this, Mary Jane was laughing her butt off. She felt like she was watching a sitcom.

* * *

><p><em>My name is Gwen Stacy. And this craziness is my life.<em>

_Or at least, it's my boyfriend's life. I'm dating a kid named Peter Parker. A while ago I found out he has a split personality. Sometimes when he's sleeping, his other self will take control of him._

_It gets worse: that other self is a costumed vigilante. As Spider-Man, he defends New York City at night for the selfish reason of being famous. Spidey wants the public to know him as HIM and not as Peter._

_The first person to discover Spidey's connection to Peter was my best friend, Mary Jane Watson. She thinks the Jekyll and Hyde thing, combined with the superhero thing, is the coolest thing in the world. So... she might be a little crazy. But I guess I'm the craziest one of all for putting up with all three of them._

_Peter doesn't like losing control of his body - and he DOES NOT want anyone else to find out his secret - but he still tries to be fair to Spidey because, yes, he is a real person (in a way). We're on winter break from school, and Peter thought it would be nice to let Spidey spend one Sunday in the city, without the costume._

_It will be a miracle if this ends well._

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes<strong>: (1/13/2012) I feel weird writing a sequel since I was so eager to "complete" my Spider-Man story before. But by the time I uploaded the last chapter of "_Dual Identity_," I was so pumped that I actually wanted to keep going. Ain't life screwy? (Laughs) I thought about writing an all-new story, but months passed and nothing was coming to me, so I eventually decided to work on an addition to my Peter/Spidey Saga.

This is not in the same continuity as my OTHER sequel, "_Duo Side_." I didn't do a good job on that one, especially the pilot. I'm actually considering deleting it from the site. But whether I do or don't, consider "_Double Life_" the TRUE sequel to "_Dual Identity_."


	2. Crazy Day pt2

**_Crazy Day in the City, Part 2: Very Important Research  
><em>**

Meanwhile, a certain Investigation Team was having its own day out.

Debra reached up, but wobbled before she could grab her target. "Whoa! Flash, please hold still!"

Flash, who had Debra standing on his shoulders, said, "It's not me, Debra. Kong moved."

Kong, on his hands and knees and letting Flash stand on his back, replied, "I couldn't help it. A cockroach ran over my hand. Debbie, do we really need to be here?"

'Here' was a rather filthy alleyway. This was the human tower's second trip here. Once was to plant a video camera near the entrance, and the second to retrieve its footage.

"I've checked - and re-checked - all my credible online sources for Spider-Man sightings, and this street is definitely one he frequents. If we keep at it, we're sure to get some usable footage." She removed the camera from its makeshift shelf.

"'Keep at-' You mean we're not done here?" Flash groaned. "Why does Spider-Man have to work so hard to keep his identity a secret? Doesn't he know we're breaking our backs looking for him?"

"OUR backs, he says," Kong muttered from beneath the two students.

"Personally, I'm more interested in the source of his powers than his face. I'd love to examine some of that webbing he uses, but it never seems to leave traces. If it really dissolves, it would support my theory of an organic basis."

"Uh, would you mind hurrying it up Debra? You're kinda heavy."

Debra looked down at him. "You get tackled by entire football teams, Flash, and you can't support one girl for a little while?"

"Well, when the guys tackle me they don't STAY there and monologue!"

"YAAH!" Kong jerked away, and the whole tower collapsed.

Debra managed to save the camera from any damage. The rest of her was less lucky. "Oww..."

Flat on his back, Flash stared up at the sky and yelled, "More cockroaches, Kong?"

"Nope. That was a rat."

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes<strong>: (1/15/2012) This chapter is pretty short. The next one will be longer. Then again, how short is too short for a chapter on this site? If you have an opinion for making this story even better, let me know. _All_ writers love feedback.


	3. Crazy Day pt3

**_Crazy Day in the City, Part 3: Fight_**

Gwen, Mary Jane, and Spidey settled in a coffee house and discussed their plans.

"Maybe we could all see a movie together," Gwen said. "That might be fun."

"Are you stupid? I'll go nuts if I sit in one spot for two hours. I'm barely holding it together just talking here." He began blowing on his hot drink.

Gwen bit back her response through sheer force of will. This was supposed to be Spidey's day, she told herself.

"...Well, what would you like to do?"

"You're asking me now? You could have brought that up before dragging me to a coffee house... which serves coffee... which I hate... which you should have known." He continued blowing.

Spidey acts so differently whenever Gwen is around, Mary Jane thought. Normally, he's so cheerful and devil-may-care. He's always trying to be funny by spouting wisecracks and puns, no matter how lame they are. He doesn't do that with Gwen. He's just a ball of irritability around her.

At first, Mary Jane wondered if Peter was developing a THIRD personality, but she knew better. All real people have different sides to them. So this just meant Spidey was a full-fledged person of his own. It would have made Mary Jane proud, if it weren't such bad news for Gwen.

On the other hand, the feeling was mutual from Gwen's end. They hated each other like it was instinct. Mary Jane knew they didn't act this way intentionally, but she wished they would get along better.

And Gwen WAS making an effort, but it obviously wasn't easy. "Sorry," she mumbled. "I ordered for you as a force of habit. Peter likes coffee."

"Peter doesn't care what goes in his mouth," Spidey replied between breaths. "If he did, he wouldn't be dating you."

Mary Jane winced. So much for effort.

Gwen reached over and poured her cup onto Spidey's lap. He knocked his chair back and screamed, "Hot! _HOT!_"

"How clumsy of me," Gwen muttered. She took Spidey's forgotten coffee cup and started drinking.

The boy glared daggers as he patted his lap with napkins. "And she wonders why I'm not nicer to her."

"I don't wonder. You do it because you're you."

"Why don't we change the subject," Mary Jane cheerfully tried to defuse the situation.

"Let's not!" Spidey shot back. "Why didn't my spider sense kick in? I'm supposed to be able to avoid danger."

"Peter spends so much time with me, his body apparently doesn't recognize me as a threat. Sucks to be you."

"Wouldn't his girlfriend be extra-threatening?"

"Guys," Mary Jane was starting to worry. "Maybe we shouldn't talk about this in public." Indeed, everyone in the coffee house was staring at the trio since Spidey's cries.

But he had a solution. "MIND YOUR OWN BUSINESS!" The patrons quickly looked away

Spidey lifted his chair upright, sat down, and lowered his voice. "Our lives would be so much simpler if you and Pete just broke up and STAYED that way. I mean, we all know it's inevitable anyway."

Gwen raised an eyebrow. Genuine confusion. "What do you mean 'inevitable'?"

"Oh?" He suddenly seemed smug. "Do I know a word that Because-I-Know-Everything Gwen Stacy doesn't? They should have a badge for that."

"I know what the word means, smart mouth. YOU'RE the one who's incomprehensible."

"It's inevitable because, although you claim to like Peter, we're always at each other's throats. How's that been working for you?"

"It works because you and Peter are not the same person," she answered like it should be obvious. "Yes, you have the same face but I know you're different people inside. Demeanor. Interests. Morals. Memories. Even food tastes differently for you."

"That's not enough," he also replied like it should be obvious. "Being different people doesn't change the fact that I'll always be with him."

Gwen didn't respond at first. "That's... true... but-"

"See, this is what I don't like about you. You call me selfish, and then you ignore the real world just to have fun with a boy. Like that's not selfish?"

Her glare grew worse as Spidey continued talking.

"You really think it's okay to date a guy who's only half-there? And who has a roommate like me? Maybe you don't care NOW 'cause you're just a girlfriend who sees him after school. But in five years? Ten years? You gonna get married and raise kids with a pair like us?"

Spidey leaned forward on the table. "Get a clue, Stacy. You two have no future."

And that's when she punched him.

Not a slap. She jumped out of her chair and decked him in the jaw, knocked him out of his seat, and sent him skidding across the floor. Then she stomped towards the door.

"Gwen, wait!" Mary Jane looked back and forth between her furious, retreating best friend and her wounded, other best friend. _Which side do I take?_

Eventually she stooped down and helped Spidey to his feet. "Not to seem insensitive to your face, but you need to apologize too."

He waved dismissively. "Let her go. I'm too mad to apologize and she's too mad to listen. Let her cool down for a while."

Mary Jane looked to the door of the coffee house, not completely convinced. But Gwen was already long gone.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes<strong>: (1/17/2012) Special shout-out to Sonar for reviewing my story. But did you mean "insane" in a good way or a bad way? Then again, I don't know why I didn't expect comments like that to a fic titled "Crazy Day." (Laughs.) Thanks for taking the time to review. I promise the story will get even more insane soon.


	4. Crazy Day pt4

**_Crazy Day in the City, Part 4: Depression_**

Central park. A tiny bridge over a small pond. Desperate to get away, Gwen ran all the way here in a very short time. But now exhaustion and depression overtook her. She leaned over the railing and stared at the water below, oblivious to others crossing the bridge.

"I knew all that without you having to tell me..." she whispered.

On TV, a split personality always represented the person's own subconscious feelings. Gwen silently begged for it to be wrong.

_You're not him... I don't WANT you to be him..._

Her cell phone rang. Knowing it would be Mary, she absentmindedly took it out of her pocket.

At that moment, a group of kids came running across the bridge.

"Comin' through! Outta the way!"

They shoved one teenage boy to the side - Gwen's side. He collided with her back and knocked the phone out of her hand. "Ahh!" The mobile dropped into the water.

* * *

><p>"<em>The number you have dialed is out of the covered area. Please hang up and dial-<em>-"

Mary Jane ended the call and stared at her cell phone. "That's weird..."

* * *

><p>Gwen and the teenager stared agape at the rippling water.<p>

On top of everything that already happened, this did not improve Gwen's mood. She gave the boy the worst version of _The Look_ she had ever given.

"I-I'm sorry!" he pleaded. "I'll buy you a new one! Right now!"

After a few more seconds of glaring, she sighed and walked away. "Just forget it."

Unexpectedly, he followed her. "No, really. I'll replace it for you. No strings."

"I don't want your charity."

This seemed to puzzle him. "It... It's not 'charity.' If I break someone else's things, I should take responsibility for it."

"You don't need to repay me."

"I need to make it up. For karma, if nothing else! I can get the newest, best phone of the market."

"Definitely not!"

"Okay... a cheap phone."

"I said no."

"I can't do anything at all to pay you back? A cell phone strap? Three hundred new minutes? A keychain? A flashlight? A get-well card? A stick of gum? Something?"

The guy seemed desperate enough. It's not everyday someone begs you to receive free stuff. But Gwen was fully aware of how irritable she was. She was afraid that if she let herself, she'd end up taking advantage of this guy. Still...

She stopped walking, turned around and faced him. "You really want to make it up? Get me something tasty."

"Done!"

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes<strong>: (1/19/2012) Another short chapter. The next one will be much longer.

In other news, thanks to "JCB" for reviewing my story.


	5. Crazy Day pt5

**_Crazy Day in the City, Part 5: Cheer Up_**

Gwen wasn't really sure what she was doing here.

The two sat at a table in an ice cream parlor. Gwen asked for a small sundae. The young man who treated her didn't buy anything for himself. He leaned forward with his elbows on the table. "You're not used to accepting goodwill or apologies, are you?" he asked with a casual smile.

She didn't look up. "Maybe I'm not," she said after some thought.

"You know, the replacement cell phone offer is still available." Gwen believed him. He would probably buy anything she asked for and think nothing of it.

Gwen didn't keep up with fashion, but she guessed the clothes and shoes this guy wore were "in style." His black hair had lots of gel making long, downward spikes. A silver piercing hung on his left ear. He seemed like the kind of kid who tried hard to be cool and often succeeded.

"I still don't want it," she answered.

"You already took the ice cream. Might as well take full advantage of my apology." He was still smiling.

He seemed to be talking differently than when they first met. He was self-confident to the point of arrogance. Humorous. Impulsive. He was starting to remind Gwen of HIM.

She forced down her contempt. "I only accepted this much 'cause I needed cheering up. Sugar is good for that."

"You don't need to be so defensive. It's my fault your old phone was ruined. Yeah, the other guy bumped me, but it's only fair I replace it. Besides, I just want to make you happy." She eyed him curiously. He grinned widely and held up his hands. "Oh, don't worry! I'm not a weirdo or anything!"

_The only people who would say "I'm not a weirdo" are the people who have been accused before_.

But instead of saying that she said, "You're pretty blunt, aren't you?"

"Would you prefer I only said stuff you wanted to hear?"

"I hate when people do that." She returned her attention to her food.

He kept talking. "Now that I think about it, I realize how all of this must seem like one big pick-up line. I swear it's not like that. I never did this with another girl either. So even if you think I've been called a weirdo before -" Gwen raised an eyebrow at that. "- I really haven't. I just don't want to start."

She stared at him. "Uh-huh." How else do you respond to that?

Gwen ate her ice cream in silence... for a minute or two.

"...So what's eating you?" the boy suddenly asked.

"Huh?"

"You said you needed cheering up. So I'm guessing you were having a bad day even before the phone thing."

"Well, yeah... but I don't want to talk about it." _Not with you, at least_.

"That's a little contradictory. You want to feel better. Talking about it helps. Or... is it because I'm a stranger?"

It was a little unsettling how he kept guessing what she was thinking. "I suppose..."

He smiled at her. "You had a fight with a friend this morning, didn't you?"

_Oh my God. He really IS reading my mind!_

"Let me guess. Your best friend has been acting all lovey-dovey with her boyfriend in front of you. And you got jealous 'cause you're still single and she was just showing off."

_Or not_.

"Sorry, Columbo. You're dead wrong. And just so we're clear, I do have a boyfriend."

He frowned and waved his hand dismissively. "He doesn't count as a boyfriend if HE'S the one you're mad at."

She sat up straight and tried not to sound shocked. "How did you know that?"

"You must be," he replied simply. "Or else you'd have gone to HIM to cheer you up on your bad day."

Gwen stared at him for a long while. Then she looked at her glass. About half of the ice cream was still left.

She placed her spoon on the table. "I'm done eating." Then she stood up and walked to the door.

Unfortunately, the boy followed her outside.

"I hit a nerve, didn't I? Sorry about that. So much for cheering you up..."

Gwen didn't respond. She only walked straight ahead on the sidewalk. He matched her pace and spoke to her back.

"Although, to be fair, you told me not to lie to you."

"What? I never said that."

"Yeah, you did. You said, 'I hate when people do that,' in response to that thing about telling you only what you wanted to hear."

"Oh... right."

"Want to take it back?"

"No, you weren't wrong. I just realized I don't need to talk to you anymore."

"That's a bit harsh. I thought we were getting along so well. Besides, you're kind of... I think you're..."

In one fluid movement the young man stepped in front of Gwen, got down on one knee, threw out his arms and said, "Ah, screw it. I'll just ask directly: GO OUT WITH ME!"

"HUH?"

He grinned wide, eyes hopeful. She gaped. She sputtered.

"Y-You can't be serious? Your first response to finding out - and in the middle of - and five minutes ago you were like, 'it's not a pick-up line, I swear!'"

"Five minutes ago, it wasn't," he deadpanned.

She couldn't stop gaping. Finally, she realized it was just easier to walk around him.

Still on one knee, he said, "Not the best reaction to my first-ever confession." He quickly recovered and walked after her.

_Seriously? He's still following me? I could probably scare him off by telling him my dad's a cop... Nah, the less this guy knows about me the better._

So instead Gwen told him, "You were wrong. You're definitely a weirdo. How exactly do you confess to someone you JUST MET?"

"Don't you believe in love at first sight?"

"No."

"I'll believe it for both of us then."

"You realize you're now stalking me, don't you?"

"How rude! I'm not a stalker. We're just having a pleasant conversation walking down the street. I haven't done anything creepy like camp outside your house, or make copies of all your keys, or memorize your showering schedule, or steal your underwear, or look through your trash, or make a website about you, or create a statue in your likeness out of your used gum."

"Just thinking of a list that long is creepier than doing anything on it!"

"That's just the kind of stuff they show stalkers doing on TV."

"Exactly what kind of shows do you watch? Nevermind, I don't want to know."

"But, in all seriousness-"

_Unlikely_, Gwen thought.

"-Despite how you claim I'm stalking you, you never actually ASKED me to go away. That's 'cause you know if I leave, you'll just have to go back to your bad day."

He was right. And the revelation made Gwen stop in her tracks.

She turned back and looked at him. It was scary... and awe-inspiring... This stranger who had only known her fifteen minutes saw right through to the core of her.

"What happened between you and your ex-boyfriend?" For the first time, he had a serious, sincere expression. He looked like a different person. He-

_A different person?_

"He's not my ex," Gwen bitterly replied. "And I don't need to tell you."

"I can take your mind off it for a while, but you won't really feel better until you get it off your chest."

Gwen didn't respond.

After a few moments, the teenage boy smiled wide and crossed his arms. "I'll just have to figure it out myself then. Let's see... We've already confirmed you hate liars. So I'm guessing... Either he keeps things from you, or he told you everything and you don't like what you heard."

Again, she didn't respond. Just grimaced.

"Well?"

Sighed. "It used to be the first, now it's the latter."

"I see. That is something to fight over. The worst part is: you can't say you wish he didn't tell you, or else that would make you a hypocrite. So you just have to bear it. But grinning and bearing it don't really work in the long run."

"...Exactly."

He smiled and clapped his hands once. "So! Now that we know what the problem is, I can get your mind off it properly. Let's go do something fun."

Normally, agreeing to do something fun with a weirdo who claimed to love her was a textbook example of how girls got hurt. On the other hand, suspicious as he was, he hadn't done anything legitimately threatening yet. His creeper-like enthusiasm could be written off as teenage excitement. He WAS only a kid.

And besides, Gwen took self-defense classes since she was seven. If something happened she'd just kick his butt.

Most importantly, she still wanted the morning's bitter feeling to go away.

"_I_ will do something fun," she proudly said, walking ahead. "Follow me if you want." The young man didn't argue.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes<strong>: (1/20/2012) This was the first chapter I wrote in this story and the one I was most excited about posting.

There's actually a funny story attached to it. A long time ago, before I finished "_Dual Identity_," the idea for this chapter (and this whole fic I suppose) randomly came to me. I wasn't sure I wanted to officially include it in "_Dual Identity_." It just seemed like something fun to write out, so I started typing in the Doc Manager on FanFiction-dot-net.

Unexpectedly, I _really liked_ the chapter I wrote even though it was just a first draft and I didn't even put that much effort into it. That's pretty rare for me. PROBLEM: I forgot about that document and got caught up in other stuff so by the time I remembered, 60 days passed and it was gone forever. That crushed my spirit for a while.

When I more recently decided to write a sequel to "_Dual Identity_," that old story was the best candidate. But I was intimidated by the thought of re-writing that lost chapter because I knew it wouldn't be the same. But eventually, I got past my crushed spirit and re-wrote it anyway. And while the first version was probably a little better, I think the version you just read is pretty good too.

**Moral**: _DO NOT_ put the _ONLY_ copy of a story in a temporary file! The Doc Manager is for _second_ drafts! Even if you have a great memory, there's no benefit to not having a permanent copy. I, for one, will never make that mistake again.


	6. Crazy Day pt6

**_Crazy Day in the City, Part 6: Frustration_**

Spidey finally stopped pacing down the sidewalk. He dug his fingers into his scalp and yelled. "Where is she already? She should have cooled off and found us ages ago!" He turned around and pointed at Mary Jane. "Call her cell phone again!"

"You've been telling me to call every five minutes," she replied. "She's not answering."

"Stacy wouldn't reject your calls. Not for this long. Something might have happened to her."

"Stop worrying. She'll be fi-" Mary Jane paused. "Wait a sec. You ARE worrying about her."

"I AM NOT! I'm worrying about ME! Stacy left because I made her mad. If she gets mugged or kidnapped or something, Peter will say it's MY fault." Spidey began stomping down the sidewalk again. "This is supposed to be my day off, and Stacy ruins it by going missing! I finally get rid of her and she's still a headache!"

Suddenly, he heard someone say, "HELP! He stole my purse!" A second later a man barreled past him. The man carried something white that clearly didn't go with his shoes.

Spidey sprinted after him. "Stealing in front of ME on my bad day? You got guts, man!"

He leapt up and kicked the man once in the head. He dropped instantly. Then Spidey calmly reached down and picked the purse out of the groaning thief's hand. Without looking, Spidey tossed the purse over his head. It landed squarely in the owner's hands. The surrounding pedestrians gave a small applause at the sight.

Rubbing the back of his head, the thief moaned and rose to his knees. "You punk... You're gonna pay d-"

"Yeah, yeah. Not in the mood. Talk to me later." Spidey walked past him without a care in the world. Mary Jane quickly hurried after him.

It took the thief a moment to register that.

"Hey! You can't just ignore me!"

"I'm in a hurry," he called without turning around. "Go turn yourself in or somethin'."

The thief rose to his feet. "I ain't taking crap from a nobody like you!"

Spidey froze.

Mary Jane winced and covered her face. "Oh no... The N word..."

Spidey was silent for a few moments. The thief watched his back, waiting for a reaction.

"I am very real..." he said at last.

Without looking, Spidey reached out and grabbed the first thing his fingers touched. In this case, it was a large blue mailbox, bolted to the sidewalk.

"... So who are you..."

His fingertips dug into the metal like it was foil. The metal legs stretched and groaned audibly. The concrete cracked underneath.

"... calling..."

After a final moment of resistance, the giant steel box was torn clear out of the ground and held over the boy's head, with little bits of cement falling from its roots.

The crowd was speechless, especially the thief.

"... NOBODY?"

Spidey turned and threw the mailbox like a baseball. Being less aerodynamic than an actual baseball, the thief dodged it without any trouble, but it left a notable crater in the spot he was standing. He ran for his life. Every other person on the street stared at the scene... despite being in New York City.

The boy panted heavily. Mary Jane tapped his shoulder. "Spidey, that was assault, probably a federal offense too."

He straightened up. "It was... wasn't it?" He paused. Then he grabbed her wrist and ran. "Let's get out of here!"

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes<strong>: (1/21/2012) Yes, I confess. Back there, Spidey channeled Shizuo Heiwajima from _Durarara!_ I love that show. It was all I could do to make it a mailbox instead of a signpost or a vending machine. Come to think of it, I've forgotten the most important part of any fanfiction...

**The Disclaimer**: I do not own _Spider-Man_, nor _Durarara!_ ...Nor _Singing in the Rain_. I think that's everything I mentioned so far.


	7. Crazy Day pt7

**_Crazy Day in the City, Part 7: Temptation_**

Walking down the sidewalk, Gwen suddenly stopped and faced her newfound stalker. This was possibly the first time she initiated dialogue with him all afternoon. "Hey, were you serious when you said you liked me?"

He stared hard. "Serious? You're asking if I was serious about loving you?" He raised his arms dramatically. "In faith, I do not love thee with mine eyes! For they, in thee, a thousand errors note! But 'tis my heart that loves what they despise. Who, in despite of view, is pleased to dote!"

Gwen rolled her eyes and resumed walking away. He followed. "Shall I compare thee to a summer's day? Thou art more lovely, more temperate!"

She glared at him over her shoulder. He shuddered a bit. "Well... perhaps thou art a tad chilly... But I'm down with that." She didn't respond. "But, yes, seriously. I really would love to go out with you."

"Your reactions are so over the top, it's impossible to think you're ever being sincere."

"Everything I told you is true. I sincerely believe we're fated to be together."

"Ugh. I just threw up in my mouth a little."

"Just the same, it was easy to fall in love with you."

"Why me?"

"I already told you."

"Oh, yes. Your love at first sight. You really believe in that stuff?"

"The second and third sights made it better. But I was hooked at the start. It wasn't like that with your ex-boyfriend?"

"He's not an 'ex' yet - DAMN IT!" She regretted it the instant the word "yet" was out of her mouth. The boy grinned from ear to ear. Gwen quickly tried to get the subject back on track. "We're classmates. He knew what kind of girl I was before he asked me out."

"But he couldn't have known ALL of you. And you already told me you didn't know all of him."

He was getting under her skin again. She quickly tried to dodge. "Love at first sight is based on how the person looks. It's a shallow concept." She wouldn't admit how flattering it was for a boy to think she was that cute. No one at school treated her that way.

"Maybe that's true. But that's only the start. After I talked with you, I liked you even better. I was like, 'wow, cute AND personality? I don't have to settle for one?' You are literally my ideal girlfriend."

"Even the part where I can't stand you?"

"You're witty. You're intense. You know what you want. You don't take crap from anyone. I love women who are emotionally strong."

"Is that what you call it?"

"Yeah, but I still know everyone has weaknesses." Gwen winced. This guy had a serious tone of voice again. She could tell what was coming next. "What did he tell you? The truth you hated so much."

Gwen stopped walking. She noticed something on the street's opposite sidewalk. A broken mailbox was smashed into the pavement. Two familiar boys from her school were examining it. A familiar girl was interviewing someone and exclaimed: "So nobody got a good look at his face?"

Gwen sighed and resumed walking. Her stalker resumed stalking. "It's none of your business," she said. "And you wouldn't understand anyway."

"Isn't that just more reason to tell me? Because I'm not too close to the problem?"

_For once, can't you be wrong about something?_

What power did this guy have that made it so easy to spill her guts? What it knowing that he'd be gone by the end of the day and she'd never have to see him again? Neither one of them had a way of contacting the other. This meeting really was a one-time-only thing.

In a very unsettling way, it made her kind of disappointed.

"I just can't be with him as often as I want to be."

"Long-distance relationship?"

She shrugged. "Maybe. But even when he's here, he's... not the same person..."

The guy doubled over laughing. Not the reaction Gwen expected.

"AHAHA! And you said I wouldn't understand! Ha... Ha... Oh, crap, I can't stop... hehahaha!"

Seriously, not what she expected.

Unamused, Gwen looked around, wondering how much of a crowd he was drawing, while calmly waiting for her companion to stop clutching his sides.

"Wooo... huh... Okay, I'm better... phew..." He stood up straight and looked at her. "Girl, everyone's like that. Me especially."

"What?"

"We all act differently depending on who we're with. It's called 'social identity.' How I act around my friends isn't the way I act around my father. How I act around him isn't the way I act around my teachers. And it's not the way I act around you. Everyone does it, I just have a little more fun with it."

Gwen didn't respond. He took that as his cue to continue.

"There are lots of 'me's' inside me. They're not just impulsive reactions; they're like roles in a play. I can BE whoever I want depending on what happens. You've seen the bouncing-off-the-walls-with-happiness me, because I met the girl of my dreams today. I could have just as easily been someone else when we found each other."

He smiled. "So you see, if a guy acts one way around a mere 'crush,' and another way around a 'girlfriend,' I can understand-"

"You don't understand."

"Huh?"

She wasn't looking at him. She was looking at something far away. Something no one could see. "You don't understand... anything."

He was silent.

_Does another person take over you, or do you choose to be different?_

Her companion/stalker looked around the area. "We've been out for a while. It's nearly sunset."

"...Yeah."

He smirked. "Sunset in New York City. I feel like I'm in the climax of a romance movie."

"Will you knock it off!"

His response was interrupted by the noise of the crowd. He turned his head. "What's that?"

Gwen followed his gaze. In the distance, people were running excitedly and pointing upwards.

He was excited as well. "Oh, man! Is this what I think it is? C'mon, let's get a better view!"

Before Gwen could protest, he grabbed her wrist and pulled her after him. They ran to a pedestrian bridge looking over the street. Up the stairs and out to the center, the boy let go of her and grabbed onto the railing. They both looked to the sky.

Ten stories high, Spider-Man swung across the sky on his webs. Everyone followed him along the ground, desperate for a glimpse of him.

"It's him! He's real!"

"He was on the news, too!"

"He saved me once! He's a hero!"

"FLASH! KONG! Get the camera!"

"I got it! I got it!"

Surprisingly, Gwen's companion actually seemed to lose some energy. He was less excited and more awestruck. "Wow... I heard he only appeared at night. Why is he here so early?"

The costumed vigilante passed directly over the two on the bridge. Time seemed to slow down.

Gwen and Spider-Man stared at each other... and Gwen understood.

_He's looking for me_.

A single drop of water fell on her forehead.

"Huh?"

"What's wrong?"

"Oh, it's nothing."

Time resumed, and the superhero swung away. Gwen and the boy moved to the other side of the bridge to keep watching him, before he faded from sight. Part of the crowd tried to follow him in vain, but the two of them stayed and savored the moment.

"That was so awesome... That was the real Spider-Man," he breathed. "I visit New York, and on my first day here, I see a real-life urban myth. A living legend."

"He's not that great," Gwen said simply.

The sun got lower.

The young man noticed her listless expression. "Sorry... I guess I couldn't cheer you up as much as I said I would. From your perspective, you must have had a crappy time with me. But..." He smiled warmly at her. "This was the best day of my life."

And this time Gwen believed him. He continued. "I came to an amazing city, I saw that city's most famous character with my own eyes... and I met the most incredible girl in the world."

He stopped smiling. He stood up a little straighter and faced her directly. "I haven't been acting very serious around you, but now I'm the serious me... I like you. Will you please think about it?"

"Think about...?"

"Will you go on a date with me... for real?"

She stared at him.

This guy's enthusiasm was uncommonly high, and yet still within the confines of normalcy. He was still a normal person.

As much as she hated to admit it, it was tempting. Gwen was living a surreal dream these days. She was often tempted to wake up and be done with it. Go back to a normal life with a normal boyfriend. No juggling time between alter egos. No protecting his secrets. No crime fighting. Just... normal.

Normal would be nice... for a while.

* * *

><p><em>"I love you, Gwen."<em>

* * *

><p>But Peter would still be there, waiting for her.<p>

He smirked, self-depreciating. "I knew you'd turn me down. I just had to ask anyway."

Gwen hadn't said anything, but she was used to his almost-mind-reading. "You knew even before you asked?"

"Yep. Because when you love someone... someone who loves you back... you will NEVER be able to forget it."

He leaned onto the bridge's railing. And after a moment, Gwen matched his pose. They stayed like that in silence, just watching the crowds and cars below them. Until Gwen saw a familiar face running down the sidewalk towards them.

"That's..."

A teenage boy with messy brown hair sprinted down the sidewalk. He raced onto the bridge, stopped and panted with his fists at his side for a second, and yelled, "Get your hands off my girl!"

_That line doesn't work if he's not actually touching me, you moron._

They stepped away from the railing and looked at the newcomer. And Gwen noticed that, while he was mostly dried off, his hair and clothes were damp. "What happened to-"

Spidey stomped over to Gwen and grabbed her hand. Then he put something into it. It was her cell phone, the one she dropped in the pond at Central Park.

"You have no idea how much of a pain it was to find this."

Gwen was stunned. Finally, she chuckled a little.

_It's obviously not gonna work anymore, moron._

The other man watched the scene and once again, smiled depreciatingly. "Damn. I've been totally defeated." He walked away. But as he passed Spidey, he patted his shoulder. "Take care of her, man. She's a keeper."

Gwen and Spidey watched him walk off the bridge and down the sidewalk, until he was out of sight.

The girl spoke up. "Hey-"

"YOU IDIOT!" Spidey yelled at her. "You have any idea how long you've been missing? That's right, missing! You had us all worried sick! If something happened to you, it would DESTROY Peter! You get that?"

"I'm sorry. But... speaking of Peter, what was that about how I'm YOUR girl?"

"I-I only said that to make that punk back off. Peter can keep you all to himself for all I care."

They were both silent for a little bit after that.

"I'm sorry, too... for what I said in the coffee house. I was right, but I should have been more tactful."

"Apology accepted, brat."

He rolled his eyes. Then he took her hand and started walking. "Come on. MJ's waiting for us."

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes<strong>: Nothing left but the wrap-up.


	8. Crazy Day epilogue

**Author's Note**: I uploaded this and the previous chapter in the same day. Make sure you don't skip one by accident.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Crazy Day in the City, Part 8: Epilogue<strong>_

Life went on.

The winter break ended and school resumed.

Gwen sat in her usual seat next to Peter - the regular Peter - and listened to the teacher. But the first thing the teacher said was not about academics.

"Alright, class. We'll be having a new student joining us for the spring semester. You know the drill. Be good representatives of this school, and make him feel welcome." He turned to the door. "Harry Osborn. You can come in now."

Harry confidently entered the room. He was a young man with slick black hair and a silver piercing on his left ear. Gwen's blood ran cold.

"Mr. Osborn moved here with his father for-"

Ignoring the teacher, Harry quickly noticed Gwen and pointed. "HEY!"

"OH, GOD NO!"

Like a little kid, he excitedly ran up to her desk. He seemed oblivious to her horror. "We meet again! And we're in the same class! It really IS fate!" He noticed Peter in the adjacent desk and moved in front of him.

"I know I told you to take care of her, but I just can't give up yet!" Harry held out his hand for a handshake. "Let's agree to a fair battle as we give everything we've got into winning her heart, my rival in love!"

Peter stared at the hand, then at his face. "Uh... Who are you?"

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes<strong>: (1/22/2012) And that's the end of the first story-arc. I'm not sure yet if I'll add more later. If you have a request, drop a review. Until then, thank you for reading.


	9. The New Guy

_**The New Guy**_

Twitch.

"...So she did a stakeout on the roof, and dropped a water balloon on him. But it wasn't water. It was cherry soda."

"Haha! Seriously? Man, this school is a riot. I'm so glad I moved here."

"And after that, he and the other girl started dating."

"Well, that's _one_ way to play matchmaker. Speaking of which, maybe I could use someone like her in my corner."

"Remember your promise. 'Fair and square'."

"I know, I know."

Her eye twitched again.

"So you said earlier that you move a lot because of your dad's work, right?"

"Yeah. Mostly along the east coast, but we've been all over. Word of warning: stay away from Jersey. Pennsie's okay because they've got the pretzels."

"Pennsie? Oh, Pennsylvania."

"Anyway, my old man doesn't plan on moving again so I should be here for a while."

"Well that's good news."

"Hey..." she finally spoke up.

Peter and Harry looked up. They didn't notice the girl standing by their table until then. "Oh, hi Gwen," Peter cheerfully greeted. "What's up?"

Gwen slammed her tray onto the cafeteria table. "Don't 'what's up' me! Could somebody please explain to me why my BOYFRIEND and my _STALKER_ are acting so friendly together?"

Harry dramatically held up a finger. "In the first place: It's not an act - we really are friendly together." Two fingers. "In the second place: I'm not your stalker yet."

"I heard that 'yet' part!"

Standing behind her, Mary Jane was desperately trying to contain her laughter.

"Please relax, Gwen," Peter said gently. "Harry's actually a great guy once you get to know him. He's funny."

_That's one word for it_, she thought.

Gwen sat down across from them. She stared at Peter, dumbfounded. "Peter, you're my boyfriend. You seriously don't see the _problem_ with this situation?"

Peter and Harry looked at each other, confused.

_He used to be so smart. Is Spidey rubbing off on him? Am I speaking to Spidey?_

"Don't you think it's a little _inappropriate_ for you to befriend him? You're aware that he has an obsessive crush on me, aren't you? He's probably thinking of how to steal me away."

"Of course I'm aware."

"'Of course,' he says..." Gwen hung her head.

"He talks about you all the time, but why is that a problem? It's not like he can actually 'steal' you against your will. He can't do anything unless we break up." His expression became nervous. "T-That's not what's happening, right?"

"What?"

"Did - Did I do something wrong? We're not going to break up, a-are we?"

"No! That's not what I meant. I just... Ugh..."

_I guess he's not wrong. Peter's not the possessive type, anyway. It's not like I'll EVER return Harry's feelings._

Gwen looked at Harry. He was smiling like the cat that swallowed the canary - like always. "So what's your angle with this?"

He raised his eyebrows high. "Me? With an angle? That doesn't sound like me."

"You don't have any ulterior motives for hanging out with Peter?"

"Of course not. Pete's a nice guy. He's smart. He's with it. And we have common interests."

"Like what?"

"You!"

"Shut up."

"When you like something, you want other people to like it too. Why should crushes be different?"

Gwen stared at him silently.

"I know what you're thinking," Harry said. "You're worried I'm gonna try to sabotage your relationship with Peter. That's not how I work. I won't do anything so underhanded. I'll just improve myself as a man until I can win you over with my charms, fair and square!"

"Yeah... If your 'manly charm' is anything like the rest of you... Not gonna happen."

He cheered up and wrapped an arm around Peter's shoulders. "The point is: just because we both understand how wonderful Gwen is, we have no reason to be enemies! The two of us are friends, as well as rivals in love!"

Peter got caught up in Harry's excitement and pumped his fists. "That's right! I'll do my best so I'll never lose to you!"

"That's the spirit!"

Gwen sighed. _Maybe I just don't understand boys_...

Mary Jane looked up. "Hey, even more company."

The others followed her gaze. Debra was walking to their table, flanked by Flash and Kong. "Are those three ever separated?" Mary Jane mumbled.

Debra smiled. "Good afternoon, everyone. Mind if we join you?" Nobody objected. The trio took their seats around the table, with Debra sitting on Harry's other side.

She extended her hand. "I felt it was appropriate for us to meet in person before the day was done. My name is Debra Whitman. These are Flash Thompson, and Kong McFarlane."

Harry nodded and shook her hand. He spoke calmly and politely. "It's nice to meet you. My name's Harry."

Gwen raised an eyebrow.

"I'm used to being the new kid, so I'm also used to other kids trying to learn about me. I don't mind. Ask what you like." He leaned back in his seat, but while he would have done it in exaggerated motions a minute ago, now he was merely being casual.

Gwen exchanged a look with Mary. She noticed it too. It was like his personality changed.

"Actually," Debra said, "and I'm a little guilty to say this, but we already know about you."

"Oh?"

"We investigated you. It's what we do." Kong got out a clipboard, seemingly from nowhere, and placed it into Debra's hand. She read. "Harold Osborn. Age seventeen, born in Albany, New York. Parents divorced. Your father is the founder of Oscorp Industries, which has major branches in New York, Massachusetts, and California. You have a three-point-nine grade point average - very impressive - and previous teachers have praised you for your serious, responsible demeanor."

The group was speechless for a moment. Debra returned the clipboard to Kong. "It's not a very throughout profile, but it covers the basics."

"That's amazing, Debra," Mary Jane said. "Especially considering he only got here this morning."

"Oh please, it was easy" Flash spoke up. "Just 'cause Spider-Man gives us so much trouble, that doesn't make us useless as an Investigation Team."

"We've got contacts," Kong proudly said.

"Wait, what was-"

"Isn't that invasion of privacy?" Peter asked.

"It's only the stuff everyone at his old schools knew," Flash answered.

Harry raised a hand. "What was that about Spider-Man?"

"Oh, yes, that's our real focus," Debra said. "The three of us form an Investigation Team trying to uncover the identity of Spider-Man."

"But we've got pretty much no leads," Kong added, "so we also investigate any other strange rumors going on in the city. In fact, we're officially part of the school newspaper now."

"Really? I didn't know that," Peter said.

"We were approved at the start of the semester," Debra said. Then she got a small glint in her eye. "You know, Peter, you'd be up to date if you were still on the team. Feel like joining again?"

He shook his head. "N-No thank you. I'm not really interested in Spider-Man anymore."

Debra returned her attention to Harry. "On paper, we're just a division of the reporter group. But in reality, we're using this opportunity to look for any clues about Spider-Man's identity or powers."

"That's awesome. That's just... so totally awesome!" Harry's energy levels spiked up. He reverted to his old personality. "That's like the plot of a manga! I was right. This is the best school ever! I'm so glad I came here!"

She smiled. "Now that we have your attention, you wouldn't happen to have heard anything interesting, would you?"

"Spider-Man's true identity..." He rubbed his chin, trying to look extra-dramatic. "He'd have to be a brave man who loves adventure. Do you think it could it be... me?"

_Sad thing is, you are a lot like him_, Gwen thought.

"It couldn't be. He's been around long before you moved here."

_They took him seriously?_

"As a matter of fact, I saw him the day I moved here."

That caught the Team's attention. They leaned forward. "Really?"

"Yep. He even swung directly overhead us, while Gwen and I were having _special alone time_."

"We were not!"

Debra looked at Gwen. "You never told us you saw Spider-Man."

She shrugged. "It didn't come up."

"Maybe we can interview you two later," Debra said. "We can always use more eyewitness reports. We'll try to narrow down our estimations for his body measurements."

"Sure thing," Harry helpfully replied. He looked at Gwen.

"The interviews will be separate," she instructed.

Flash spoke up, depressed. "But even if we find a guy who exactly matches his height and weight, that won't prove anything."

"If only we knew how Spider-Man's powers worked," Debra mused. "And how did he get them?"

"He got them from Oscorp," Harry carelessly said.

Mary Jane spat out her drink - directly onto Kong's shirt. He clenched his jaw. "Again...?" He reached for some napkins.

The redhead looked at Harry in shock. "Why, I mean, what makes you say that so... confidently?"

He shrugged. "It's as good a guess as any. I don't mean to brag-"

"Since when?" Gwen asked.

"-but Oscorp makes the most advanced inventions and science-y stuff anywhere. So where else would Spider-Man get his powers?"

Gwen groaned internally. _Hit the bull's eye. I hate it when he does that_.

"Come to think of it," Kong muttered as he wiped his shirt, "Spider-Man _was_ first seen right after that field trip the school took to Oscorp."

Peter wanted to change the subject and fast. "So, uh, your dad runs Oscorp Industries, right?"

"That's right."

Mary Jane said, "So that pretty much means you're rich?"

"Yeah, very rich." He smiled at Gwen. "Impressed?"

"No."

"What's your dad like?" Peter asked.

"He means well, but he's kind of insane."

His nonchalant tone caught everyone off guard. "What do you mean, 'insane'?"

"You know. Insane. Whacked out. Nuts. Like, BWLAAUGH!" He threw his hands up for emphasis, startling the group.

"I... see..." What else could someone say to _that_?

* * *

><p>Peter and Gwen walked home together after school.<p>

"Are you mad at me?" Peter asked.

"No," she answered after brief hesitation. "I don't mean to tell you your business. You can hang out with whoever you like... I just want to know why _him_? Of all people?"

Peter shrugged. "We just... hit it off. I like him. He makes me laugh, and he's confident. And he has some really interesting views on social identity. He's actually pretty smart in a lot of ways." He hesitated. "Besides... I was a little lonely."

"Lonely?" she asked with concern.

"It surprised me too. I used to be fine on my own. I told myself I didn't need friends. But since I met you... I guess I got greedy for more. Don't get me wrong - You and Mary Jane are great! But she's more of your friend than mine... or more of You-Know-Who's friend. And besides, sometimes I want to hang out with someone my own gender."

Gwen nodded, understanding all his points.

"And..." He trailed off.

"And?"

Peter sighed. "I can't thank you enough for the support you've given me... but I need a friend who doesn't know about You-Know-Who. I need someone I can pretend to be normal around."

This, too, Gwen could sympathize with. She knew better than anyone how fragile Peter was inside.

"Okay, I won't complain about it anymore. But you need to be careful with your secret around him. He has this nasty habit of figuring out what you're thinking."

"I understand."

"Actually, just be careful in general. I don't like how you can never get a straight answer out of that guy."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean like with his dad. He said his dad was insane but he couldn't possibly have meant that for real." She nervously added, "...Could he?"

Peter couldn't answer that.

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, Harry walked home alone after school. Or rather, he meant to, but Mary Jane suddenly tagged along.<p>

"Somethin' up?"

"Gwen and Pete got to know you pretty well. I just figured it was my turn," she answered.

"How do you like me so far?"

"Well, my BFF can't stand you. But you wouldn't be the first person like that I befriended. And Pete likes you, so I guess you're okay."

He grinned. "You wouldn't be interested in helping me win Gwen's heart, would you?"

She grinned back. "Not in a million years."

Harry's face dropped slightly.

"I've been rooting for Gwen and Pete since the start. I even got them back together after a nasty break up." Mary Jane smiled sweetly. "If you split them up again and render my hard work for nothing, I'm gonna do something really terrible."

He matched her expression. "What's love without obstacles?"

They walked in silence for a few moments. Mary Jane was hesitant to bring up the next topic, but she was curious.

"Say, Harry. I noticed that you're real hyper and eccentric around Gwen, but you calmed down for a while when Debra and her add-ons showed up."

(Somewhere far away, Flash and Kong became inexplicably irritated.)

"What's that about?" she asked him.

"I am a multiplicity. Like the song!"

A pause. "I know you feel like that explains things, but..."

"I have a bunch of different personalities, so I pick and choose which one seems best at the time."

That got Mary Jane's attention. "Different personalities?"

"Everyone does it to an extent." He smirked. "_You_ don't act _exactly_ the same way all the time, do you? You change your mood depending on who you're with or what you need to get done."

"I see. So that's all you meant. That means... you remember it all, right? You're aware of how you act as it's happening."

"Uh, yeah? Why wouldn't I be?" He was confused, but he said it with a laugh.

Mary Jane didn't answer him.

Harry let it slide and kept talking. "Around the guys at school I can be the cool and mysterious new kid. Or, with a teacher, I can be a diligent, serious student. And around Gwen, I'm a fool in love... Come to think of it, I've been stuck in fool-in-love-mode a lot recently. I guess that shows how deep my feelings are. But I could still choose to be any type of person I want."

"So you're faking it? You're just pretending to be someone else?"

"No. Not faking. I always mean everything I say. I just meant I can become another _me_." He laughed. "Besides, you can never really be someone _else_. That's just stupid. No matter what you do, you're still you."

"That's not true."

Harry was surprised by her stern tone. They both stopped walking.

"It _is_ possible for someone to be more than one person. Even if _you're_ not like that, it's still..."

She stopped. The things Harry said were like a denial of her friend's existence. But...

_Sorry Spidey, I shouldn't say any more_.

Mary Jane turned her nose up and walked proudly. "Don't act like such a know-it-all."

Harry watched her for a second, but then he followed her.

She wanted to change the subject. "This is all very interesting, but you never answered my real question. Why do you act in - What did you call it? Fool-in-love-mode? - around Gwen? You must be able to tell that it bugs her. Isn't that counterproductive for your master plan?"

"...That depends on what I want."

"Huh?"

Harry narrowed his eyes. "You think it doesn't affect me?" he asked quietly. "Sharing a school and a homeroom with the girl I love when she likes someone else? How else am I supposed to deal with that? At least this way we have a relationship. Even if it's just banter... even if she thinks of me as a nuisance... I'll take whatever I can get."

Mary Jane was silent.

"Oh! Don't get the wrong idea. Just 'cause I'll take what I can get, doesn't mean I won't try to get even more." His bitterness was gone completely. Was that just another act?

They reached an intersection. Harry turned to face her and smiled. "Well, I go this way. It was nice talking with you. I got some... very valuable information."

Mary Jane raised an eyebrow, trying to hide her nervousness. "About what?"

"Just kidding!" And he ran off.

She watched after him, replaying their conversation in her head. Then she readjusted her bag and walked away.

* * *

><p>And as all this was happening, in Oscorp, two scientists walked down the hallways with nervous expressions.<p>

"You heard the news, right?" Natasha Quarter asked. "The founder moved back to the New York branch."

Howard Backyard nodded. "Better now than back when all that chaos was happening."

"Now that he's here, in person, you don't think he'll find out about what we did, do you?" Quarter asked.

"No way. That's all in the past. As long as we stay calm and act natural, he'll never suspect anything."

"I certainly hope so. If he even remotely suspects us, we'll be fired. Or arrested. Or worse."

"What's worse than getting arrested?" Backyard asked.

"People have been known to disappear around him..."

"That's just rumors! We'll just keep working like we always have and-"

A voice called out behind them. "Good afternoon."

They spun around. "Mr. Osborn!"

Norman Osborn wore a fitted suit and had black hair slicked back. He wasn't _very_ tall, but he had a presence that could make anyone feel smaller. He smiled warmly at them. "We've met before. I never forget a face. You're... Dr. Quarter. And you must be Dr. Backyard."

"A-Actually, _I'm_ Backyard," he pointed to himself.

Osborn waved his hand dismissively. "My mistake. You spend so much time together you're practically interchangeable."

They frowned. He didn't seem to notice. "Walk with me. I'm trying to get re-acquainted with all the workers at this branch." Still smiling, he moved past them. They followed his pace.

Things were very quiet as they walked. Backyard and Quarter glanced at each other in confusion. "Um..."

"I have a question for you," Osborn suddenly interrupted. "Why do you think I started Oscorp Industries?"

"Huh? Oh, I couldn't hazard a guess. Could you, Natasha?"

"N-No."

"The answer is simple. I did it out of love."

_Not_ the answer they expected. "Love, sir?"

"Yes, love. I love science. Also, I love humanity... Just so we're clear, I mean humanity as a whole, not necessarily each member. But that doesn't matter. We're talking about science now."

The two scientists glanced at each other. Then they looked at his back again.

"I'm more prominent in the business world now, but I've always viewed myself as a scientist and an inventor. I love science because it teaches us how the world around us functions. All experiments, be they successful or failures, are breeding grounds of knowledge."

"...Okay."

"Creation can be an experiment too. It lets humans observe something never before seen. So by extension of loving science, you could say I love creation, too. The creation of something new is a magnificent thing. That's why I'm an inventor... However, like I said, I also love humanity. So if there were ever an experiment or an invention that hurts humanity - no matter how magnificent if may be in its own right - I'll destroy it instantly."

"Is... Is that so?"

"Oscorp is prominent in weapon designs, but they only exist for the self-defense of the community. It's just like the creation of Spider-Man."

The two scientists tensed up for a moment, but they managed to hide it.

"He's a very violent person," Osborn continued, "but he works to clean up the crime in this city. I don't know who he is but I admire him greatly. It's my wish that he stay out there, fighting crime forever. The creation of Spider-Man is an example of a _good_ creation."

"Uh, yes. We agree too."

"A bad creation would be, for example, if a criminal got the same powers as Spider-Man and used them for harm. That would leave a bad taste in my mouth."

"I suppo-"

"THEREFORE!"

Backyard and Quarter jumped. Osborn turned toward them and glared death.

"I'll forgive you because you helped create Spider-Man. But the next time you build an organic bio-graft in my lab and try selling it to a delivery man pretending to be the Kingpin, I will consider it a very... very... bad... thing. You don't want to irritate the man who has already forgiven you once... _do you?_"

The two employees silently shook their heads.

Osborn smiled warmly again. "That's a good attitude to have." And with that said, he calmly walked away from them.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes<strong>: (4/4/2012) Special Shout-Out to "jordylilly777" and "anonymous" for reviewing. It means a lot to hear that this is amazing and original. I wasn't sure about continuing this story, but you asked for it. I still had an idea or two in reserve anyway. (Sorry it's a little late.)

**Disclaimer**: _"I am a multiplicity. Like the song!"_ The song Harry refers to comes from the movie _Benji's Very Own Christmas Story_, which I do not own.


	10. Before the Calm

_**Before the Calm**_

Harry had been a student at Midtown High for a few months now, and it seems he was getting a little popular.

"Um..." The girl fidgeted nervously, before finally plucking up the courage to say, "I like you. Will you please go out with me?"

Harry smiled brightly and replied, "Okay!"

The classmate also smiled brightly, then Harry cheerfully added, "But, the thing is, I'm actually already in love with another girl. I mean madly, head-over-heels in love. So I'd only be using you to try and forget her. If you don't mind being used, we can go steady no problem. Also, I don't have a three-date rule. We can get physical at whatever pace you're comfortable with." He thought for a moment. "One more thing. If we ever do get serious - somehow - you're gonna have to sign a pre-nuptial agreement. My dad insists."

The girl stared at him blankly. Then she slowly turned around and walked away.

* * *

><p>"They <em>all<em> have the same reaction," Harry explained as he played with his food. "They never even get mad and yell. They just... stare."

From the other side of the cafeteria table, Flash muttered to Kong, "Why are we eating with Puny Parker and his friends again? When did we become a clique?"

"Quiet, Flash," Debra told him. Flash scowled, but didn't say anything.

Harry excitedly spoke up again. "Oh! But that pre-nup doesn't apply to _you_, Gwen. I'd want to take care of you. And I want you to be happy long after I'm gone."

"Just be gone. That'll make me plenty happy."

"You said 'they all'," Kong repeated (with just a tiny pang of jealousy). "Do girls confess to you really that often?"

"_Really_ that often." He shrugged. "But it's not like I'm trying to get rid of them. It's just, A: I have to be Happy-Go-Lucky Harry when I'm talking about love. I just have to be. And B: I want to be up front with everything. But it's for the best. Those girls don't really like me. They just want my money. Which is funny 'cause I don't have a lot of money."

"Yes you do," Mary Jane said. "Your dad's one of the four hundred."

"Four hundred what?" Kong asked. He was ignored.

"Okay, I _have_ money, but I can't just _throw_ it around. My dad wants me to be responsible. That's one of the rules in exchange for enjoying my youth."

"Enjoying your youth?" Peter asked.

"Yeah. See, I need to be ready to inherit Oscorp the moment my dad retires, whenever that is. So my dad always tells me to 'live my childhood to the fullest,' while I still have the chance. He may be nuts, but he has a lot of sense."

Mary Jane nodded. "Oh, so that's why you're like... you... when we're not in class."

"That's right! I'm enjoying my high school life on max power! I'm trying to get down all the clichés. The next big thing on my list is joining an after-school club, but I'm trying to decide..." Harry hesitated for a few moments, then his eyes widened and he pointed at Debra. "I should join the Investigation Team!"

"HUH?!" said... everyone.

"My life would be like a TV show! Think of it: On the surface, I seem like a typical high school student, but I'm in a special club that looks into the urban legends in New York with rumors of Spider-Man as top priority. I, the protagonist, spend my days taking bizarre cases, working with my friends, fighting crime-"

"We don't do that."

"-searching the city for clues. And then in the B plot, I try to win the heart of the heroine, my first love! And at the climax of the series we finally confess our feelings for each other and share a passionate emb-"

Harry was cut off by soda spraying into his face. The soda can emptied after a few seconds, and Gwen placed it back on the table with a loud "clank!"

"Your B plot has been canceled," she deadpanned.

Peter got a dreamy smile on his face and told Flash, "Isn't she wonderful?"

Flash laughed, but stopped quickly. "Wait, are you being serious?"

Harry wiped his face with a napkin and casually mumbled, "...I was just thinking out loud."

"Actually," Mary Jane spoke up, "since we're talking about your team, there's something I've been wondering for a while." She picked at her food as she spoke, not really wanting to make eye contact with anyone (especially Gwen or Peter - speaking this topic in public would probably make them scold her later).

"What will you guys do if you ever do find out Spider-Man's secret identity?"

"_When_ we find out," Kong corrected.

"You guys have ties to the school paper," Mary Jane continued. "Are you going to spill his secret to the whole school? Or are you going to sell the info to a real newspaper so everyone will know?"

Gwen watched Peter out of the corner of her eye. He tried to mask his despair with a blank face, but Gwen knew. Mary only said what Peter feared constantly. But his downcast eyes went up in surprise when Flash said, "Probably not."

"Really?!" Mary Jane asked. "I mean - That's - I mean - Why not?"

"Well, I dunno. We _might_ tell _some_ people," Flash replied. "We won't decide for sure until it happens. But he wears that mask for a reason... duh. Spider-Man's my hero. I just wanna meet him, not stop him from doing his job."

So they weren't trying to expose Spidey after all. Hearing that made Peter happy inside... though it was offset by Flash calling Spidey a hero.

Mary Jane looked at Gwen and smiled, as if saying, _Ha! It was a good thing I asked after all_.

"Flash is right," Debra added. "We didn't form the Investigation Team for fame or money. It's all for the sake of intellectual curiosity." Debra spoke proudly and adjusted her glasses. She clearly thought the simpler motive equated to a higher purpose.

Kong slammed his big fist onto the table and grinned. "It's about pride, dudes. We're doing it to prove we can!"

Harry pointed at Kong dramatically. "Yes! That is the indomitable spirit of a true Investigator! But it raises the question, what _would_ you do if you met him?"

"I'm very interested in learning how his powers work," Debra answered.

"The first thing I'd do is ask for an autograph," Flash said.

"Me too!" Kong added. "Can you imagine being the first two people to ever get his autograph?"

_Please don't, he does not need the ego trip_, Gwen thought.

"Is that all?" Peter blurted out with surprise. He picked up his milk box as he continued. "After all your effort, you'd just ask for a signature?"

"That's not _all_, stupid," Flash shot back. "I said it's the _first_ thing I'd do."

"What would _you_ do if you ever met Spider-Man, Parker?" Kong asked.

"M-Me?" Instead of just dismissing the question, he stopped and considered it carefully. He realized that, for once, it was safe to reveal his true feelings. Everyone else at the table waited expectantly for his answer.

"...I'd probably punch him in the face," Peter said darkly.

"HUH?!"

"Don't misunderstand," Peter continued, staring straight ahead. "I don't _want_ to punch him. I can think of several things I'd rather do. I'm not a violent person. It's just that, if I ever came face to face with that person, I imagine attacking him on sight would be an uncontrollable impulse!"

He unconsciously crushed the milk carton in his hand. It took him a few seconds to realize it, then he hurriedly used his napkin to try and soak up the mess on his tray. The rest of the group was silent.

"...L-Let's change the subject," Mary Jane offered.

"Y-Yeah," Flash agreed. "So, uh, Harry, I noticed you dyed your hair."

Harry had all-black hair since he moved to New York, but today he had bright red highlights streaking through. He also had a second earring hanging off his left ear.

"I was _waiting_ for somebody to say something," he replied in mock exasperation... probably mock. "I decided to experiment with a new image. But I couldn't decide what color so I went for a two-toned look." Harry looked around the table with a big smile. "So how is it? Is it hip? Is it me? Is it stylin'?"

"It looks like clown hair," Mary Jane deadpanned.

"It looks ugly," Gwen deadpanned.

No one else said anything. Harry slowly turned to Peter, who sat beside him. He had the expression of a kicked puppy.

"Um... _I_ like it," Peter said.

"PETER!" Harry tackled him in a hug. "You're such a good friend! I'm gonna hate myself when I finally steal Gwen from you!"

"Kong," Gwen held out her hand, "please give me your soda."

Kong kept the can away from her. "No way."

As soon as he said that, the bell rang. Lunch was over. Everyone wordlessly gathered their trays and left the table.

* * *

><p>Peter walked down the hallway towards his next class, thinking back to the lunch he just came from.<p>

He had multiple lunches like that during the months Harry lived here. Having a big group of friends, talking and laughing over trivial things, getting excited, getting frustrated, being lively... being a _normal_ teenager. Those moments were absolutely priceless to Peter.

Because for just a few minutes at a time, they made him forget...

_Spidey..._

Peter promised himself that he would be responsible. That meant he wouldn't avoid his problems or duties. He wouldn't wish for an easy exit that wasn't coming. Even so... he was thankful for those brief moments where he could escape reality.

_But the problem with happiness is... The more I have, then the more I have to lose_.

"AAAHHH!"

Peter gripped his head in both hands and fell to his knees. He felt like the force of a tidal wave crashed into his body. There was a police siren inside his brain.

_DANGER! DANGER! DANGER! DANGER!_

This sensation came out of nowhere, and it was stronger than anything he felt before. It took several seconds for Peter to regain his bearings.

"Are you okay?"

He looked up. While the others students passed Peter without a glance, one boy stood in front of him, holding his hand out. His face was completely emotionless.

Peter stared at the hand in front of him. Then he ignored it and stood up on his own. "I'm fine."

He examined the other boy carefully. He had curly red hair. He might have been a year or two younger than Peter. His face was still emotionless.

"Are you... new here?"

"Yeah. I transferred a few days ago. But I don't know how long I can stay. It depends on what happens."

Peter didn't know what to say, so he said nothing.

The other boy introduced himself to Peter, then walked past him without waiting for a response. Peter looked over his shoulder and continued to watch him.

Since they shared the same body, Peter had the same powers Spidey did. Peter never practiced with them, so he wasn't confident he could use them the same way, but they were there. One of those powers was a sixth sense that warned him of danger (Spidey called it the Spider Sense, but Peter refused to use such a silly name). And since it was automatic, Peter already experienced it a few times before as a mild buzzing in his head.

That danger sense was what made Peter collapse moments ago. It's supposed to get him out of harm's way, but it was so strong and abrupt that it overwhelmed him. It was just like a searchlight suddenly flashing into his eyes in a dark room. It took Peter several seconds to adjust and understand what he was sensing.

The danger sense was reacting to that boy.

Truly a sixth sense, it found things that were undetectable by seeing or hearing. That person didn't have any weapons or superpowers. He wasn't even trying to hurt Peter - Peter wasn't in immediate danger - but there was something about him that was "dangerous."

Every fiber of Peter's body told him that person was a "threat."

That boy was an "enemy."

* * *

><p>The rest of Peter's day continued normally. After school, he met up with Harry and walked home with him.<p>

Contrary to her original attitude, Gwen encouraged Peter to hang out with his new friend as much as he wanted. In her own words: "The more time he spends with you, the less time he has to harass me."

Harry suddenly spoke up, "You think I should dye my hair again?"

Peter wasn't expecting that. "I thought you liked that two-toned look."

"I do," Harry answered with melancholy. "I wanted to stand out, but what Gwen and what's-her-name said at lunch really got to me. The problem is, what color would I change to?"

"You could make it all red instead of just streaks," Peter suggested.

"Nah."

Harry dismissed it without offering a reason. That made Peter unsure how to respond.

"Well... how about the normal kind of red?"

"The what?"

"You know, like Mary Jane has. It's orange, but they call it red."

"I said I wanted to be unique. I don't want a normal-looking color like that." Harry hesitated. "But come to think of it... Isn't she the only redhead in our school? Maybe I'd stand out after all."

A face flashed through Peter's mind.

"Actually, I met another person today," he said without thinking.

"Just today? Was he new?"

"Yeah... He said he just transferred a few days ago."

"As the last new kid, I figured I'd be the first to hear about the newest new kid," Harry said. "What's he like?"

"Uh..."

Peter had to think about this. After all, he could hardly tell Harry that kid triggered his danger sense. He struggled to remember what his other senses told him. What that boy said... How he looked...

"If I had to pick a word, I guess he was... creepy?"

After a few seconds, Harry stopped walking. Peter noticed and turned around.

"A creepy redhead..." Harry was deep in thought, as if he remembered something. Finally he asked, "What was his name?"

"His name?"

_The other boy introduced himself to Peter, then walked past him without waiting for a response_.

"I think it was... Cletus... I think that's he said."

Harry was silent. He expression became somber. Peter wasn't used to seeing that on him. Just like his danger sense, it told him that something was very wrong.

"Him again..." Harry breathed.

* * *

><p>Like every day in downtown Manhattan, a sea of people literally filled the sidewalks. They walked in both directions nearly shoulder to shoulder. The streets were brimming with people, moving alongside the rows of buildings.<p>

But on top of one of those buildings stood only a single person. He was a young boy with curly red hair. He stood at the very edge of the roof, looking down. An inch past his shoes was nothing but empty air. He could barely see the ground beneath him, but he knew it was there. He could barely see the pedestrians, but he knew they were there.

That's why he had a large rock in his hand.

Without saying a word he held it out at arms' length... and dropped it.

* * *

><p><em>THUD!<em>

"Wha - Aaahh!"

"What happened?!"

"That's guy's been hit!"

"By what?"

"He's bleeding!"

"Call an ambulance!"

_**To be continued...**_

* * *

><p><em><strong>Author's Notes<strong>_: (9/30/2012) The making of this chapter has a funny story behind it. For a long time now, I've had all these one-liners and brief paragraphs of the characters interacting with each other, but I never knew how to turn _any_ of them into a full chapter. But one day, it magically came to me and I just _knew_ how to throw all of them together. It was like knocking over a jigsaw puzzle box and having all the pieces fall into the right spaces. Still, it wasn't easy, since there was a lot of fresh stuff to write in addition to the one-liners.

Extra-Special Shout-Out to "JustNobody," who wrote one of the most touching reviews I've ever had. I regret that it took a full two months to write that chapter I promised. Like I said, my real life schedule has gotten a lot busier than it used to be. And that's in _addition_ to writer's block. (PS: Your PM didn't sound condescending at all - I appreciated the advice.)

I kinda rushed this chapter during the last few days because I _**did not**_ want it to take _longer_ than two months. I don't know how good it is or if I got down everything I wanted to. I wanted to get this chapter out, but I may unexpectedly replace it with an edited version in the next week or so (unless someone objects).


	11. Before the Storm

_**Before the Storm**_

Harry didn't want to talk in public. Or at least, he didn't want to talk with a crowd of people walking past him on the sidewalk. What was on his mind was not the type of thing you let strangers overhear. Peter felt this way on a regular basis, so he naturally didn't object. They resumed their previous conversation in a fast food restaurant, at a table in the far corner.

Though the answer was obvious, Peter still asked. "Do you know that Cletus person?"

Harry leaned back in his chair. He wasn't Happy-Go-Lucky Harry or Impress-the-Teachers Harry. He was Serious-and-Insightful Harry.

"His full name is Cletus Kasady. He lived in the same city I used to, before I moved to New York."

"Are you sure it's the same Cletus?" Peter asked. "Couldn't the name just be a coincidence?"

"Cletus is an rare name. That by itself would have been enough to convince me. But if he's around our age, has red hair, and struck you as 'creepy,' then there's no mistake. It's definitely him."

"Good point."

Harry crossed his arms. "Though, it's a big shock to hear that he's in New York now, and in our school. I don't know if he followed me or if that part's just a coincidence. It could be either. Actually, given how long it's been, it's probably the latter. Either way, it's a shock. When I moved I honestly thought 'good riddance.' I thought it was the last time I'd see him."

"It's pretty rare for you to dislike someone so much," Peter observed. "I thought you wanted to be friends with everyone, no matter how bad they were."

Harry stopped to think about this. "Is that really how I seem?"

Peter shrugged. "Well, your 'personas' are just ways to get along with other people, right?"

"Oh... I guess so. I never thought of it like that. In that case... Cletus is more exceptional than I thought. If I treat him differently, it's because he himself is different."

"So what _is_ he like?"

"Do you remember when I said my dad was insane?"

Peter hated that word, but he didn't want to get off-topic. "I do."

"I meant it, but he's just the eccentric kind of insane. Cletus is the bad kind. Like, 'a danger to himself and others' insane... Especially others." Harry spoke in a calm and serious tone. He wasn't joking.

That tone made Peter timid about his next question. "What happened between you and Cletus?"

"_Between_ us? Not much, actually," Harry answered. "He went to my school, but he was a year under me. I only ever spoke to him a handful of times. However, you may have noticed, I have an uncannily accurate ability to 'read' people. That allowed me to notice things about Cletus everyone else overlooked. Specifically, I noticed that people around him 'accidentally' got hurt. The victims all thought they were accidents, but I'm convinced Cletus was involved."

"I see..."

In other words, Harry didn't have any proof.

As if in response to Peter's thoughts, Harry said, "I can't accuse him legally, but we're not the police. Why shouldn't I trust my gut? Besides, there is a strong piece of evidence against Cletus: he didn't care."

"...About?"

"About his victims. Or more literally, he didn't care about the people who got hurt. Cletus didn't have a motive for hurting those people. I think he just wanted to cause trouble. He has a complete lack of empathy for people's pain... a lack that sane people do not have. See, even when you're not trying, it's very easy to hurt someone you don't care about."

Peter nodded.

Harry was clearly biased. It sounded like slander, especially without Cletus there to defend himself. And Harry admitted there was no proof. Just the same, Peter believed him completely. _This_ was the reason Cletus triggered Peter's sixth sense. It wasn't because of his actions. It was because Cletus had a mindset that made it easy for him to target and injure people without getting caught. And that was what made him "dangerous."

"The reason I'm telling you all this is to warn you," Harry calmly continued. "Don't get involved with Cletus. Even if he starts talking to you, just walk away. Don't bother giving him an excuse. Just walk away. I found that's the best way to deal with him. Tell that to Gwen too, please."

Harry stood up from the table. "I don't usually tell you your business like that, but I refuse to let people I care about get hurt. They were only small injuries last time I saw Cletus... but those type of things are only going to escalate."

And with that said, Harry walked out the restaurant. Peter didn't follow him.

* * *

><p><em>I believed everything Harry told me, but I felt like he was holding back. I felt - no, I KNEW - there was something important he wasn't telling me... but I didn't pursue it.<em>

_My danger sense and Harry's warning were simply not enough. I had no way of knowing just how much chaos Cletus' arrival would bring...  
><em>

* * *

><p><em><strong>Author's notes<strong>_: (10/11/2012) Not much happens in this chapter, but in the words of Lady Holiday from _The Great Muppet Caper_: "It's plot exposition - it has to go somewhere."

I've been thinking lately that the Spider-Man comics and various TV series are action-based, but my stories are either comedy, romance, or psychological intrigue (if that's what you want to call it - I don't even know what it means). There's not much action for the fans of canon Spider-Man. But I plan on throwing some in the next chapter.

Special Shout-Out to "thegirlinthewindow" (the only bad review is a blank one) and "Emily B" (who is "us" and what exactly am I doing to you? I guess I'll take it as a compliment) for reviewing. Plus a regular thank you to the people who favorite and follow me.

_**Disclaimer**_: I don't own _The Great Muppet Caper_... as if anyone suspected me.


	12. An Evil

_**An Evil...**_

Tires screeched loudly as the van came up to the 24-hour convenience store. The van was so close it nearly crashed through the windows. Everybody inside heard it.

Without even waiting for the momentum to stop, three men jumped out and stormed the building. They each had a ski mask and a handgun.

"Ahhh!"

At first, the customers ran to different corners of the store, but the gunmen yelled out instructions for them to group together in one spot, brandishing their guns. The customers grew quiet and obeyed. One woman fingered a can of pepper spray in her purse, but she knew it couldn't outmatch the range of a bullet.

Then a fourth person nonchalantly walked into the store. He came out of the same van, but he was clearly different from the others. His ski mask was bright red, with a jack-o-lantern smile painted on the front. He didn't have a gun, but he wore a backpack over a bulky, zip-up jacket.

He was short and thin. He couldn't have been more than a teenager.

He surveyed the scene. "Five customers plus the cashier. Better than I hoped, considering it's the middle of the night. Then again, this is the city that never sleeps... or is that Las Vegas?"

As he spoke the fifth person, the driver, carefully moved the van even closer to block the door.

The cashier was still behind the counter, with his hands in the air. "I don't want any trouble! The register's right there - just take it."

"Awww, the poor guy's done this before. How precious," the red-masked boy cooed. "But we're not here for money, man."

One of the gunmen grabbed the cashier and dragged him towards the patrons. Then all six hostages were huddled together, with the three gunmen aiming at them. The red-masked boy walked close and stared at the group.

"Ladies, put your purses on the floor please," he said. "And kick them over to me."

Slowly, quietly, they did as they were told. The red-masked boy kneeled down, grabbed a purse, and dumped the contents on the floor.

"I thought you said you weren't after money?" the cashier spoke up.

"I'm not," he replied. Dissatisfied, he grabbed another bag dumped the contents. Out dropped the pepper spray. "Bingo!" He took it and stood up. "I'll save this for later," he mumbled, stuffing the pepper spray into his pocket.

"W-Who are you?" one of the customers breathed out.

"Me?" the red-masked boy asked. "You could say I'm in charge here. These scary guys are taking orders from me."

"But you're just a kid?"

"The fact that I'm just a kid and I can STILL get these scary guys to take orders from me, should tell you how capable I am. Now let's get down to business... I want you to call Spider-Man for me."

"...Call Spider-Man?" The hostages looked at each other, confused.

"Yeah. Yell, 'Spider-Man! Save me!' at the top of your lungs. Again and again. I figure he has to show up eventually."

"I... I don't understand..." Another hostage spoke up timidly. "You... want us to call for help?"

"Look, guys. We don't want to deal with you. We want to deal with Spider-Man," the red-masked boy explained. "As hostages, your only job is to get his attention... AND to keep the cops off our backs 'till he gets here."

"If we're calling help anyway, let us call the police."

"Don't worry, man. With the racket you'll be making, someone outside will definitely call the police anyway. Now call Spider-Man."

"That's what this is about?!" A hostage who hadn't spoken before protested. "If you want him, find him yourselves! We don't want any part of this! Let us go!"

Arguing with his captor, even with guns pointed at him, wasn't because of bravery. It was his anxiety reaching the breaking point. When that happens people will sometimes lose their self-awareness and act on instinct, without even knowing if they're increasing or decreasing the danger.

The red-masked boy wasn't expecting it. His voice lost its playful tone. "It's very simple. These scary guys want to meet Spider-Man so they can become famous by killing him. And you are going to help them by calling him NOW."

"No! We won't do it, so let us go!"

The red-masked boy stared at him for a short while.

"Man, what an idiot," he said at last. "Refusing to do what we tell you will NOT make us let you go... FIRE!"

_**BANG!**_

The man fell to the ground, dead instantly.

"Aaahhhhh!" All the other hostages screamed. With that casualty, what was once a scary situation evolved into complete hysteria.

The red-masked boy yelled loud enough to be heard over the screams. "For the last time! If you don't want to get shot, _CALL SPIDER-MAN!_"

"H-Help..." a young woman whispered. Then louder, "Help us... Spider-Man!"

The others joined in. "Spider-Man, help us! Please save us!"

"Finally..." The red-masked boy said. "Now louder!"

"SAVE US! SPIDER-MAN! SPIDER-MAN! SPIDER-MAN!"

The gunmen silently kept their guns aimed at the shouting hostages. The red-masked boy started giggling as if he were watching a comedy.

* * *

><p>Web-slinging is a lot like falling, but with more directions.<p>

As Spidey sailed through the air he shot another web line onto a passing building. Gravity brought him down in a wide arc and momentum sent him back up an equal distance. Then he let go, sailed through the air again, and landed hands and feet onto the side of the next building.

"Maybe I should do this less often," Spidey muttered. "Could it _actually_ get boring if I do it too often? Scary thought."

That's when he heard the police sirens. He stayed still to try and find where they were coming from. Coincidentally, they were actually coming towards him. Spidey watched them pass on the street below and speed away. There were a few of them, which meant they were headed for something serious.

"Even if I do get desensitized to web-slinging - heaven forbid - it beats walking," he said as he shot another web line. He pushed himself off the building and followed the flashing lights below.

Soon, Spidey heard the chanting. Peter or Gwen might assume it'd boost his ego, but Spidey didn't like the sound of it at all.

* * *

><p>"...Spider-Man! ...Spider-Man!" Their voices were starting to get hoarse.<p>

The red-masked boy casually looked at the shelves, as if he were oblivious to the crowd's screaming. "Should I get some bleach while I'm here? I could use bleach."

"THIS IS THE POLICE," came the voice through the megaphone. "WE HAVE THE BUILDING SURROUNDED. RELEASE THE HOSTAGES, AND WE CAN STILL SETTLE THIS PEACEFULLY."

"Man, more idiots," he grumbled. "I didn't start all this so I could settle it 'peacefully'."

Outside the store, the van's driver still sat immobile. Multiple police cars surrounded the van with more on the way, but none of the officers tried to capture him. The van was a wall between the police outside and the criminals inside, but it wasn't meant to keep the police out. The van stopped the hostages from escaping.

Spidey watched the situation from the roof of another building. Again, Peter and Gwen had the wrong idea about him and he wished they were there for him to explain. They thought Spidey never put thought into anything, and though that was _common_, it was not constant. He considered his options slowly. This was like a game where a less-than-high score made people die.

He could jump to the van, pull the driver out, and push the van out of the way (he might need to change the gears to neutral first, but if he told this story later, he would omit that part because he's _definitely_ strong enough to move a _mere van_). But any way he imagined it, it would take longer than he wanted. Spidey doesn't like long.

He could sneak into the building. There must be an air vent or something on the roof. He'll come back to that idea later.

He could just crash through a window. It was a convenience store; the front windows took up almost the entire wall. The question was: would a sudden appearance like that make the bad guys shoot the hostages? If they're letting the hostages scream like that, they can't be _that_ trigger-happy.

This might be his ego talking (yet another of Peter and Gwen's assumptions - the more he thought about it the more he hated their low opinion of him) but it felt like the bad guys _wanted_ those people to call him. They wouldn't be the first criminals who tried to get a piece of the infamous Spider-Man. He decided to test that theory.

Spidey silently jumped down and landed deftly between the police and the van.

The hostages' chanting turned to cheers. The police re-aimed their guns and told him to freeze, but someone inside the store screamed, "No, no, no! Let him in! Let him in! Let him in!"

The driver moved the van out of the way. The glass door was no longer blocked. That confirmed Spidey's theory.

The voice from before said, "Spider-Man can come in 'cause we asked for him, but no one else. Remember everyone, this is a hostage situation." If that was a text, he would have put a :) at the end.

Spidey braced himself for a trap and calmly walked through the front door.

Oops. He forgot to consider the sneak-inside/silent-takedown approach. Oh well, too late now.

Spidey took in the scene. The first thing he noticed was the dead man on the floor. It didn't faze him too much. He'd seen bodies before, though this was the first in a while.

The five living hostages were silent, expressions mixed between fear and hope. Salvation was close, but not guaranteed.

The gunmen turned their heads towards Spidey, but kept their guns aimed at the others.

And the red-masked boy stood in front of the counter.

Spidey noticed something strange. His Spider Sense immediately reacted to the gunmen, of course, but there was also a subtler reaction from the red-masked boy. He didn't have a weapon, but there was a vague "danger" coming out of him, like an aura. That wasn't normal.

"FINALLY, we meet! I've been waiting for this." The red-masked boy introduced himself. "My name is Carnage. Nice to meet you."

"You'll take that back once I'm done with you."

Carnage ignored the remark. "I have a question," he suddenly sounded serious. "This has been bothering me for a while. 'The city that never sleeps'... Is that New York or Vegas?"

Spidey shrugged. "I dunno. But _I_ spend half the day sleeping. Gives me the energy to take out trash like you guys."

Carnage nodded. "Big talk. I like that... Boys," he called, "ignore the hostages... and OPEN FIRE!"

Spidey didn't need to think about his options this time. Battles are fought on instinct.

He jumped into the air, dodging bullets (the windows weren't so fortunate), arching his torso sideways so he wouldn't hit the ceiling, with each wrist he shot out a ball of his newly designed "compact webbing," they hit two of the guns and burst like water balloons, the sticky mesh splattered all over the guys' hands and pistols, safety triggers were gummed up and the guns were useless.

Just as gravity started to pull Spidey down, he reused an arm to shoot a web-line at the middle gunman, the line stuck to his weapon, Spidey yanked it out of his grip, the gun flew out the shattered front window. Spidey landed on the ground, jumped towards the unarmed bandit, his fist connected with the other's face, the man went flying, Spidey landed again, reached out each arm to the other criminals, grabbed their webbed-up weapons, used his strength to tear them loose from their hands, twisted his body around to toss the guns out the window, fell forward and landed on his outstretched hands, kicked his legs back and pushed the two ex-gunmen into the first. Then Spidey got back on his feet.

The whole thing took about five or six seconds.

The five hostages ran out of the store. After that, the police were finally able to act. Some ran to the van to subdue the driver, and the rest ran into the building.

"Everyone freeze!" To Spidey's smug satisfaction, the cops ran past him and didn't aim their guns at him this time... though they did say "everyone."

The ex-gunmen raised their hands. Carnage didn't.

"Hey! What is this?" one of the men - the one who shot the dead hostage - yelled at Carnage. "You said we wouldn't get caught! You said you had the perfect way to beat Spider-Man!"

"Man, I never said that," he said with a smirk in his voice. "I said I had the perfect way to beat everyone... And I mean EVERYONE."

In one fluid movement - it took less than a second - Carnage opened his jacket with one hand and pressed the other hand on the _**bomb**_ wrapped around his waist.

"Ta-da!"

By the time everyone realized what they were looking at, the digital timer read 3:58... 3:57...

"I don't like putting my own life on the line," Carnage said, "but anything beats losing... right?"

The criminals and police were both frozen with fear. One officer lowered his gun and took a step forward. "Listen pal, don't do anything-"

"STAY BACK! This bomb is already armed. If I don't turn the timer off, it WILL blow up in four minutes. Is that enough time for your bomb squad to get here? I don't think so! Alternatively: I could push this big red button and blow us up right now!"

Spidey hesitated. Should he say anything? Would they believe him?

"Don't try any tricks," Carnage continued. "My finger is ON the trigger button. If you grab me, or even if you shoot me, there's no telling if it'll flinch or not." He giggled, as if he said something funny.

"So here's the deal: I'm going to escape, you're not going to stop me, and once I'm sure no one's following me, I'll turn the bomb off. Sound like a plan?" Without waiting for a response, Carnage started walking backwards. He kicked the back door open and left the building.

"I'm going after him," Spidey said. He jumped away before the police could stop him.

* * *

><p>Carnage ran through the dark alleyways. His backpack didn't seem to slow him down at all. Neither did the beeping bomb around his waist.<p>

But Spidey jumped down and landed several feet in front of him, blocking his escape. That made him stop. "Oooh, so you decided to chase me after all? I didn't turn the bomb off yet. But you can still beat me up if you want... so long as you don't mind being right next to ground zero!"

Spidey said nothing. He stood straight and crossed his arms.

"Heh heh... Just kidding." Carnage pressed the red trigger button. The timer changed to 0:00.

And nothing else happened.

"Yeah. The bomb's fake." He took the belt off and dangled it in the air. "But it looks real, doesn't it? My friend made it for me." Then he dropped it on the ground. "I knew it wouldn't fool you, man. That fancy super-costume warns you about danger."

Spidey flinched. _He knows about my Spider Sense - and the bio-suit. That's not good_.

He changed the subject. "You abandoned the rest of your gang back there. They're gonna be pretty ticked at your next reunion."

"They're not MY gang. They're just some clowns I hired for this one job."

"And what exactly was the point of this 'one job'?"

"Man, what a stupid question. I obviously wanted to meet you. I just wanted to introduce myself. After all, if I'm gonna become a Supervillain, I need to meet the resident Superhero."

"Why would you _want_ to become a Supervillain?"

"Oh please, that's another stupid question. I just want it. That's all. I thought it would be fun."

"...A man died back there," Spidey said after a moment. "Was that fun? Did that _really_ make you happy?"

Carnage stopped to think about this, and the answer surprised him. "No, it didn't... It was too easy."

"Did you want him to suffer?!"

"That would have helped," he replied nonchalant.

Spidey was silent.

He never preached to people about "justice," "righteousness," or "altruism." Spidey wasn't even sure he believed in those. He, too, was a superhero just because it was fun. So he could understand the criminals he fought, and even Carnage, a little. But even though Spidey cared about himself most, he still cared about other people. Carnage's sadism crossed a line...

...He pissed Spidey off!

"Is that why you didn't use a real bomb?" He asked. "It would have been 'too easy'?"

"Actually, man, I just have no idea where to get a real bomb. The truth is, I'm just an Amateur Supervillain right now. I don't have any powers or fancy gadgets. Wait, that's not true. I have do have ONE fancy gadget."

Carnage reached back and pulled up the back of his mask, careful not to let the front rise up. A small device was stuck to the back of his head, over his hair. It almost looked like a pedometer. Carnage gently took it off and replaced his mask.

Spidey stared, confused. "Is that thing important or something?"

"It's my prize possession. This - HEY!"

Spidey shot a string of web and snatched the device right out of Carnage's hand. Once Spidey had it, he pulled the web off and examined it carefully. "What is it? A pedometer for the brain?"

"...Yes, actually," Carnage answered. "It measures my brainwaves. It's recording my brain activity as part of a very important experiment." He held out his hand, and his voice stopped being playful for the second time that night. "Now... _give it back_."

"Superhero rule number seventeen: If it's important to the bad guy, even if you have no idea what it is, don't let him have it." He picked that number randomly, but Spidey had the sudden urge to think up sixteen other rules.

"Don't screw with me, man! I did not say 'please' or 'if you feel like it'!" Carnage was enraged. He dropped his backpack onto the ground and knelt down to open it. Then he pulled out a portable CD player. It was off, but the volume control was at the highest setting. "Didn't I say I knew about your danger sense?! That's because I know EVERYTHING about you! About your powers! And about your weaknesses!"

"Clearly, you've been misinformed. I don't have any-"

Carnage pressed "PLAY." But it didn't play music. It was an electronic tone - It almost sounded like a tuning fork, but it was much higher and much louder.

Spidey's knees hit the ground before he realized he was falling. He crouched over, shuddering. He couldn't speak. Or scream. The noise didn't just hurt his ears - His whole body was in pain. Finally, he collapsed on the pavement, clutching Carnage's gadget to his chest and panting for breath.

Carnage stood up, leaving the CD player on the ground. "See? Even a cheap recording like this hurts you. And your danger sense couldn't warn you, either."

He walked over to Spidey's shuddering form and tried to grab the device from him, but even in pain, Spidey wouldn't let it go.

"Drop it," Carnage ordered.

Spidey was just conscious enough to shake his head.

"Piece of..." Carnage walked back to his backpack and took out the only other item: a lead pipe. It was barely a foot long, but very solid. He walked back to Spidey and struck.

"I! Said! Drop it!"

On the third swing, Spidey lost his grip, and the so-called "brain pedometer" fell onto the concrete. Carnage instantly grabbed it.

"Do you have any idea how expensive this was?! Well... I didn't pay for it, but still." He put it back onto his head, beneath the ski mask.

Spidey rolled onto his back, but Carnage put his foot down on the hero's chest. "No, don't get up. Save your strength. The tape's not on repeat, you know. You'll be able to move again once it stops. I'll be long gone by then, of course."

Spidey moaned. He couldn't do anything else.

"What? Surprised I knew about your weakness to ultra-sonic sounds? Meeting you was MY idea. Did you think I wouldn't have a way to protect myself?" He lifted the front of his mask, just enough to expose his mouth, then he leaned down low to Spidey's face.

"You never stood a chance against me, MAN!" Then he blew a loud, wet raspberry.

Carnage stood up and walked away. "Step one of my Grand Master Plan is now complete! See you again in step two, Spider-Man..."

Spidey stayed on the ground, shaking, head pounding, and waited for the tape to stop.

For the first time, Spidey realized that he was an _extremely_ sore loser. He would _not_ let this be the end of it.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes<strong>: (1/8/2013) Epic failure to update is epic.

Special Shout-Out to "twenty-two-spectacles" and "LandofMidnightRain" for reviewing. And to answer spectacles' question (in case anyone else was curious): Peter and Spidey can't really talk to each other since only one of them is "awake" at a time. They communicate by writing in a shared diary. Peter's letters are very detailed and grammatical descriptions of his day, along with a LONG list of rules Spidey isn't allowed to break. While Spidey's letters are like, "some stuff happened," or sometimes, "whatever stacy told you don't believe her! it wasn't my fault!"

**Disclaimer**: I do not own the Spider-Man franchise. I admit, this chapter was largely inspired by episode 42 of "Kamen Rider OOO," which I also do not own.


	13. Introspection

"Sometimes I had an overwhelming urge to speak, not about that, but only to hint that there were some curious things about me which no one knew of." -Carl Jung

_**Introspection  
><strong>_

_I, Gwen Stacy, think Peter is a good person._

_He works so hard to find himself._

_But he refuses to sacrifice the other one._

_He wants to help everyone._

_Peter is such a good person._

_I felt like he could break at any second._

* * *

><p>Peter and Gwen had two types of dates, so to speak.<p>

The first type were actual dates. They usually went out somewhere, like a theater, or a restaurant, or a park. Sometimes they would just sit on a bench and hold hands, watching the sunset.

When Flash heard that he blurted out, "What are you, a middle-aged married couple?" Then Peter smiled sheepishly and Flash added, "No, that wasn't a compliment."

The second type of date - which not even Mary Jane knew about - weren't dates at all. They were closer to therapy sessions for Peter, with Gwen as the counselor.

Peter, admittedly, had an intense paranoia about someone overhearing his secret, so he could only talk freely when there was an empty house available. Gwen's mom was sometimes out until late for various PTA events. And Gwen's dad, being a policeman, was always out late.

Peter had sides (not alters) of himself that he couldn't show anyone. He wouldn't even admit them to himself when he was alone... but he could show them to Gwen. He would stomp around her bedroom, screaming and raving about the random, stupid, "why me" unfairness of it all.

Or sometimes he would be calm, and tell Gwen the list of annoying things Spidey did that week, bringing up whatever minutia he could think of to make the list longer and, in his head, more worthy of complaint.

Or rarely, he would try to say something, but his throat would choke up and he'd suddenly start sobbing. And Gwen would silently hold him and let him sob.

Peter hated being a guy who cried in front of his girlfriend. Moreover, he hated dumping all this crap onto someone else, let alone somebody he cared about so much. She shouldn't be the only one playing therapist. She had things that bothered her, too. Peter hated being the one who needed the most support.

But Gwen never complained. She quietly accepted everything. Maybe she had her own sessions with Mary Jane. Peter didn't know.

Besides, Peter couldn't help it. The stress and hatred he suppressed every hour of the day could only come out when he was alone with her. Peter told her things he wouldn't dare admit to himself... Selfish things... Evil things... Things like...

_"If only he didn't exist."_

Of course, even if he could, Peter would never act on those thoughts... because he _chose_ coexistence.

* * *

><p><em>I, Peter Parker, am always contradicting myself.<em>

_My thoughts are my own._

_How hard do I have to think that to make it true?_

_He's in my body and brain._

_I'm becoming someone I don't know about._

_I don't want it._

_I don't want to lose myself._

* * *

><p>This was one of the first so-called "therapy sessions" that involved physical therapy.<p>

Peter was laying facedown on Gwen's bed. His shirt was rolled up to his shoulders, revealing three ugly bruises on his back.

Gwen had gotten out the first-aid kit. She sat on her desk chair and began applying cream to the black and blue blotches. "This should make it heal faster."

"Thanks."

"Do you know what caused this? It's pretty rare for Spidey to take a hit from a normal person."

"His journal entry was blank - completely. He only does that if something really bad happened."

"I see." Gwen finished with the medicine and started applying bandages. "Did your aunt and uncle notice you were hurt?"

"I don't think so. At least, they didn't say anything. I only really see them at breakfast and dinner. Ever since Spidey appeared, I try to avoid all other contact with them."

"Doesn't _that_ make them suspicious?"

"Hopefully, they'll just write it off as a moody teenager phase. Like I said, they haven't said anything so far."

"It must be hard, hiding a secret like this from people you live with."

"It's incredibly hard... but I only have to endure it for a few more years."

Gwen thought it was sad that being with family was something you had to _endure_. "Okay, I'm done."

She pulled his shirt back down, but Peter didn't move. "I hate this," he said at last.

"I know. You have every right to be upset."

"Do I? People with Dissociative Identity Disorder usually have a whole group of alters to deal with. Sometimes dozens. I only have Spidey. They'd say I was lucky - that I shouldn't complain."

"Maybe. On the other hand, how many of those groups have superpowers and fight crime?"

"...Good point."

"_Everyone_ is better off than somebody, Peter. And problems aren't interchangeable. Isn't that part of individuality?"

Peter sat up, but kept his eyes to the floor. "Thanks."

Gwen moved next to Peter on the bed. She placed her hand over his, and they sat in silence for a while.

Peter spoke up first. "We've talked about this before, but you remember the so-called 'cure' for DID, right?"

"Integrating the personalities into one, wasn't it?"

"Neither of us want that - me and Spidey, I mean. If that happened, we'd both be gone, and there'd be this new compound whoever in our place. Sure, it'd be _a_ version of me... but it wouldn't be 'me' - the me that's thinking right now. I'd be gone.

"I know I'm over-thinking things. I know that people are changing all the time and it's natural. I know I'm not the same as I was when I was five, and you're not the same as when you were ten, and I know there are other patients who integrated and are fine with the results. I know all that, but I... I can't help how I feel! Being _myself_ means thinking about what _I_ want, right? I don't want my mind to transform into something it's not. I... I..."

He started shaking. Gwen quietly wrapped an arm around Peter's shoulders and pulled him close. He calmed down, but he still wouldn't lift his head.

"Spidey appeared completely out of the blue. What if I wake up one day and find out we merged together naturally? Or there are suddenly a bunch of new personalities? I don't like not knowing how my brain works, Gwen... It scares me."

"...It'll be okay, Peter," Gwen answered. "Maybe it's irresponsible to say that without any guarantees, but that's how I feel - as _my_self. You're going to be okay."

They had this conversation a few times before. The wording was almost the same, but sometimes, Peter just needed to hear it again.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes<strong>: (1/21/2013) Here's a short intermission from the Carnage Arc. I wanted to give another look into Peter's life outside school and his relationship with Gwen. This feels a little different than my previous chapters, but it features a few themes I sorta implied before, and I just wanted to write them out explicitly. Sorry if it's too angsty.

Special Shout-Out to Dragonskyt for reviewing.

I didn't mention this in the disclaimer last time, but I should have. While my version of Carnage does owe a lot to the Joker (and Bane), I got just as much inspiration from Armus, the "skin of evil" who killed Tasha Yar in "Star Trek: The Next Generation."

**Disclaimer**: I don't own, nor am I trying to take profit away from, The Dark Knight Trilogy or the Star Trek franchise - as if anyone suspected me.


	14. C1 Outbreak

Peter's cell phone rang as he was doing homework. He grabbed it with his free hand while keeping his eyes on the papers. "Hello?"

"Hey, Pete." It was Harry's voice. "I need to talk to you about that Carnage guy in the papers."

"About who?"

"About... Didn't you see the news today?"

"No, I've been busy."

"Oh. Okay, then I'll tell you what happened last night. But before I do, I need to make sure: Peter, you know that we're friends, right?"

"Uh... yeah."

"So I'm not saying this because I dislike you or I'm mad at you. It's just because I can't resist telling someone 'I told you so'."

"Okay...?" What the heck was this about?

"There was a hostage situation in the middle of the night. Some guy calling himself 'Carnage' grabbed a bunch of people and used them to call out Spider-Man. One of the hostages was shot. Then Spider-Man showed up and saved the others. Carnage tied a bomb to himself and scared everyone so he could run away, and Spider-Man ran after him. Nobody saw either of them after that."

Peter thought about this carefully. It was nice to finally know what happened, but... "Why are you telling me this? Why should I care what Spider-Man does?"

"This isn't about Spider-Man, Pete. It's about Carnage... That was Cletus Kasady. You know, the kid who I said was dangerous."

"What makes you think it was him?"

"When I read this article, the first thing I noticed was the name the culprit used," Harry replied. "Cletus Kasady had that _same_ nickname back when I knew him. Well... I wouldn't call it a nickname. He only used it around me. And never in a felony. Then again, I told you his stupid pranks were going to escalate."

Once again, Peter wasn't sure how to respond at first. "Should we tell the police?"

"No. The evidence is too circumstantial. It's not like he has a copyright on the name 'Carnage.' Besides, there's only my word that he was involved in those other accidents."

Peter realized that Harry never went into detail about those accidents.

"I _know_ I'm being biased, but I'm not wrong either. Cletus did those other things, and he did this hostage situation too. That mere fact that it happened the same week he moved here is enough to convince me. Please keep your distance, Peter, for your own sake."

"Harry, what _exactly_ happened between you and Cletus?"

He was silent for a moment, then he calmly said, "I accused him, and he denied it. Nothing happened."

And then Harry hung up.

**_Carnage Part 1 - Outbreak_**

Spidey woke up and jumped out of bed.

He wasn't waiting for anything. He mentally summoned his costume while walking to the window.

The bio-suit responded to Spidey's thoughts because it was part of his own body. Permanently attached, but invisible within his skin when not in use. Whenever he willed it, it washed over his body like a gel and dried into fabric-like texture. It was black, but shone dark blue under light.

Then Spidey added color to it. From black/blue to black/blue and red. Then the red gained a spider-web pattern. Then the pattern had a spider insignia in the center of his chest. It all took just a second or two. Spidey's control over the suit increased with practice, but he was pleased with the current design and decided a long time ago not to alter it further. But that was no concern to him right now.

He noticed a piece of paper taped to the window.

_Stop keeping us in the dark! -Peter and Gwen_

Spidey ripped the note off without a second glance and opened the window. He didn't bother checking if the coast was clear. Spidey jumped out and began web-slinging from telephone poles. He didn't waste time crawling around stealthily. He was going for speed.

He headed straight for Oscorp.

* * *

><p>Oscorp Industries Science Research Lab.<p>

Carnage was already inside the building, wearing his red mask with the jack-o-lantern smile. He stood in front of a door that read, "RESTRICTED AREA." In one hand, he held a security key card. In the other, he held a can of pepper spray.

_Dissatisfied, he grabbed another bag and dumped the contents. Out dropped the pepper spray. "Bingo!" He took it and stood up. "I'll save this for later," he mumbled, stuffing the pepper spray into his pocket._

Carnage told Spidey that the hostage situation was just an excuse to introduce himself - just to have fun. That was only half-true. He was also hoping he could gather supplies for this exact purpose. He planned this visit to Oscorp a long time ago.

He swiped the security card through the card reader, and the door opened.

There were two technicians in the laboratory beyond. They noticed Carnage immediately, of course. "What are you doing here?!"

One of them ran towards him, but Carnage nonchalantly shot the pepper spray into his face. The scientist collapsed on the ground, clutching his face. The other scientist, seeing what happened, had the presence of mind to grab safety goggles from his worktable.

But while he was getting them on his face, Carnage dropped the bottle, reached behind his head - into his backpack - and pulled out his lead pipe. Carnage struck once from behind, onto the man's head. He wouldn't be getting up for a while. Carnage put the pipe back into his backpack and walked to the other end of the lab.

There was another door, but larger, thicker, probably titanium. Carnage swiped the card through the card reader. The electronic screen read, "INSUFFICIENT CLEARANCE. ENTRY DENIED."

The boy looked at his card in confusion. "Huh. I guess it's NOT one-card-fits-all." He looked back at the technician he hit with the pipe. He walked over, rolled the groaning man onto his back, and took a new card out of his lab coat. "I'll be taking this, thank you!"

Carnage returned to the giant door and tried the new key card. The door parted in the middle and slowly slid open.

"Man, the security around here sucks," Carnage said as he walked through. The door closed behind him.

Carnage was completely unaware of the camera on the lab's ceiling.

* * *

><p>Norman Osborn watched the scene from a laptop on his office desk. His expression was cold and seething.<p>

"Sucks, he says. We'll see about that."

On his desk, Mr. Osborn pressed a green button.

* * *

><p>The room Carnage entered was very different from the last one. The room was large and barren. There was only a glass tube in the center, stretching from floor to ceiling.<p>

There was no obvious light source except from the glass. It cast a faint, unnatural glow against the walls and Carnage's body. Carnage stepped forward slowly. He gazed into the glass.

On the bottom of the case was a dark, sludge-like object. Black and red. Blood red.

Carnage reached behind his head and pulled out the lead pipe again.

"With this, I'll finally be able to destroy him... With him gone, I'll get everything I want..."

He raised the pipe.

"Everything!"

He swung.

* * *

><p>Howard Backyard and Natasha Quarter were working late in their shared office. This was the same place they hid the bio-suit they created, and where Spidey acquired it later.<p>

And now Spidey had returned, knocking on the window. The two scientists glanced at each other in surprise. Then Backyard walked over and opened the window for the visitor. "Peter, what are you-"

"YOU LOUSY, SCUM-SUCKING TRAITORS!" Backyard jumped away just before Spidey could throttle his neck, while Quarter backed up against the wall.

Spidey climbed inside the room but didn't chase them. He stood straight with his fists clenched at his sides. "Correct me if I'm wrong - even though I'm not - but I thought you promised to never tell anyone about my identity or powers!"

"We... didn't..."

"Clearly, that isn't true, because _someone_ I met last night knew things that even I didn't know! He knew my powers came from this super-costume and he knew how to beat them! He didn't figure it out by reading tea leaves. _SOMEBODY_ must have told him. It couldn't be anyone but you two!"

"Please, calm down." Backyard stepped forward with open hands. "We haven't told anyone your identity... but anyone in Oscorp could look up information on the bio-suit."

"What are you talking about? You two made this suit secretly."

"We made the working version secretly," Quarter countered, "but the concept of an organic bio-graft has been around for a while. We actually copied your suit from the incomplete model."

Spidey stopped and stared for a second. "Model... You mean there's another suit like mine?"

Backyard explained. "We told you before that Oscorp used to experiment with bio-grafts - machine parts that are installed in human bodies. Things like electric generators, mechanical arms, even a flying suit shaped like vulture wings. Of course, human experimentation is illegal so Oscorp had to stop... but only officially. The labs are still doing research behind the scenes."

"And the guy who runs the lab is okay with that?" Spidey asked.

"It was Mr. Osborn's idea," Quarter answered.

Spidey didn't respond.

"The old bio-grafts were crude machines," Backyard continued. "They were implants - you couldn't take them out. So Oscorp began trying to develop an organic bio-graft: a bio-suit. It would be something that wouldn't need to be installed and, ideally, could be taken off anytime with no damage to the wearer."

"In that sense," Quarter cut in, "your suit is a failure, because the bond became too strong and now it's attached to you. You see, the bio-suit works with a BCI that receives signals from your nerves and-"

"I didn't ask for a science lesson!" Spidey yelled. Then he calmed down and tried to get a straight answer. "Are you saying that another suit was made before mine, and it's been hiding in the lab here this whole time?"

"Yes and no," Quarter said. "The higher-ups _started_ to make something: Protoform X. But they could never finish it. When the Kingpin - I mean, the fake Kingpin - contacted us, we used Protoform X as a blueprint for making a new bio-suit. We tried to correct the incompleteness by grafting traits from a pre-existing life form. In this case, a spider."

Spidey put a hand on his forehead and slowly paced around the room. "Let me see if I understand this... You made _this_ suit by yourselves, but it's based on something the whole lab was working on. Carnage found out about _that_ suit, and he figured I must have gotten my powers from something just like it. And _that's_ why he knows about my powers?"

Backyard stepped forward. "Listen, Peter-"

"Don't call me Peter!" he snapped.

"Don't worry. No one can hear us."

"_I_ can hear, and I don't like being called that!"

"Uh, okay... Spider-Man... What is all this about? Who found out about your powers?"

Before Spidey could respond, a loud alarm began buzzing through the entire building.

"_BRRREEE! BRRREEE! BRRREEE!_"

* * *

><p>An explosion broke down the metal doors. And flying through the smoke came a glider - a machine shaped almost like a giant bat. A single rider stood with a foot on each wing. He wore dark green Kevlar and a helmet. The glider stopped in midair as the man surveyed the scene.<p>

The glass containment tube was shattered. A lead pipe was on the floor nearby, discarded and forgotten. And huddled on the floor was what could only be described as a mass of red... A mass of slime that continuously stretched out and collapsed upon itself. It wasn't even humanoid. There might have been a human figure inside it, but it was obscured by a collision of tendrils, blades and teeth.

The man on the glider touched his helmet. "This is Hector Jones of Goblin Platoon One. We're too late. The target has begun to bond with Protoform X. I'm requesting authorization to terminate."

Norman Osborn's voice sighed through the transmission, then he said, "_Granted_."

"Roger." The man squatted down and pressed a hand onto the back of his glider. The left wing shot out a missile towards the red maelstrom.

But in a fraction of a second, a long tentacle whipped out from the target and swatted the missile into the ground. It exploded and covered the room in smoke.

As the smoke dissipated, a figure stood up straight. It was human-shaped now. A dark red body. Claws instead of fingers. Giant crystal eyes. And a gaping mouth with jagged, misshapen teeth. It seemed to be grinning like a three-dimensional jack-o-lantern.

The man touched his helmet again. "This is Hector Jones of Goblin Platoon One. The target now has full control of Protoform X. Requesting backup. This is not a drill!"

* * *

><p>"<em>BRRREEE! BRRREEE! BRRREEE!<em>"

Backyard and Quarter ran down the hallways, trying to find the source of the problem.

"That alarm is really loud. Can't you turn it down?"

Quarter looked over her shoulder and saw Spidey running along the ceiling. "Why are you following us?!"

"Because the waiting room was out of magazines."

"_You're_ the one who didn't want people to find out we know each other! You should be hiding!"

"If there's an emergency going on, there's no way I'm gonna sit around twiddling my thumbs."

"_BRRREEE! BRRREEE! BRRREEE!_"

The hallway led them to an open, cylindrical room, connecting every story of the building. A number of video monitors and computer consoles lined the walls below, and more monitors hung from the ceiling above, all turned off. Backyard and Quarter leaned over the banister to look. Something dark red came crashing through a door on the lower story. It was small and thin, but monstrous.

"What is _that?!_" Spidey cried.

"It can't be," Backyard said. "Protoform X?!"

"_That's_ the other suit you were talking about?"

"But I thought they couldn't complete it," he added. "Who's wearing it?"

Something new came following the red figure: Four men in SWAT-like armor, each riding a mechanical glider. They surrounded the red figure, and it hissed like a caged animal. Their outfits were different, but Spidey recognized the gliders.

"Hobgoblins! Lots of them! ...What's going on?"

The moment Spidey said that the alarm went off, and all the monitors turned on simultaneously. They all showed Norman Osborn's face.

"_Correction,_" the displays proudly said in unison. "_These are my 'Green Goblins' - Oscorp's private security force. Don't forget, Hobgoblin stole his glider and arsenal from us. THIS is what it was meant to be used for. For your own safety, you should stay away from the friendly fire. We'll handle this_."

The red figure was confused by the announcement. Then it looked up and saw the trio. It burst out laughing. "Man, it really is a small world!" It waved. "Nice to see you again, Spider-Man! If I knew it was this easy to bump into you, I wouldn't have bothered with that party last night."

Spidey couldn't believe it. "Carnage?!"

Now that he concentrated, he could feel it. Beneath the dangerous suit Carnage now wore, there was the same vague "danger" he felt when Carnage was only in civilian clothes.

Spidey's Spider Sense was meant to warn him of the _potential_ to destroy. Last night, Carnage only had the _desire_ to destroy, but it was so strong it triggered his sixth sense anyway. Now he had the will _and_ the means.

"Exactamente, Spider-Face! How do you like my new, full-fledged Supervillain costume? Is it 'stylish'? Is it 'me'?"

Spidey glanced over the teeth and claws. "It's 'you' all right."

"_Carnage_," Norman Osborn resumed. "_This is your last warning. If you keep Protoform X, I will be forced to destroy you both. Return it and surrender, and I'll see that you're treated fairly_."

"Tempting offer, Boss-Man, but you can stuff it. This suit is MINE!"

The hands of Carnage's gelatinous suit stretched out into spears. They pierced two of the gliders and brought them crashing to the ground. The machines blew up right beneath the pilots' feet and sent them flying into the wall.

The two remaining gliders launched missiles towards Carnage's back, but whips grew from his shoulders and smacked them in midair. They exploded harmlessly on the ground behind him.

Carnage turned around and jumped. He tackled a Green Goblin in the air. The final Goblin couldn't get a clear shot.

"Friendly fire, my butt," Spidey said, "I'm not watching this!"

Spidey jumped down from the balcony. Before he touched the floor he shot a web-line from his wrist. It stuck to Carnage's back and Spidey pulled him away.

Spidey landed on his feet. Carnage landed on his back. The fourth Goblin finally launched another missile, but Carnage shot a string of gel - not unlike Spider-Man's webs - caught the missile in midair and sent it into the glider he was just attacking a moment ago. A third glider was destroyed, and its pilot passed out on the floor.

Norman pinched the bridge of his nose. "_It's going to cost so much money to replace those gliders_..."

The Green Goblin - now the only one left - launched a barrage of smaller missiles. Carnage and Spidey both ran away a scarce second before they hit the ground.

The explosions rocked the room up to the second story, and Backyard and Quarter decided to run for cover.

"Hey watch it! I'm on your side!" Spidey shouted.

"Mr. Osborn tried to warn you," the Goblin callously replied. He flew after Carnage.

Carnage literally bounced off the walls, dodging everything the glider threw at him. He seemed to be enjoying the excitement.

"_Mr. Jones,_" Norman called, "_t__he contingency weapon is ready now_."

"Roger." The Green Goblin stopped his assault and flew down a corridor.

"Hey man, I'm not done with you yet." Carnage yelled, running towards the doorway.

"Neither am I!"

Spidey jumped at Carnage and slammed his fist into Carnage's head. The monster went sliding across the floor.

"Alright, Laughing Boy, spill it!" Spidey yelled. "What are you really after?"

Carnage got back on his feet. "I already told you last night, man. I'm just causing trouble."

"Liar. It must have taken a lot of planning to break in here and steal that thing. Not like last night when you had other people do all the work. Plus, even over that screeching, I heard you talk about your 'master plan'."

Carnage stared for a moment, then he chuckled. "Okay, you caught me. There IS something I need this suit for... Something VERY important."

"Like...?"

He chuckled again. "Sorry... No more hints."

_He's not taking this seriously at all_, Spidey thought. _Is this how I sound like to other people?_

"I MIGHT give you another hint later. Try again tomorrow or something," Carnage said between snorts of laughter.

"You'll be locked up in a cell by tomorrow."

"Ohhhh..." Carnage stopped laughing. "Big words, considering you got your butt handed to you last night. You didn't stand a chance BEFORE I got this power, Spider-Face. I'll take you down again and it'll be just as boring as-"

A shockwave cut him off. Carnage instinctively guarded his face, then he lowered his arms to look again.

Spidey's suit changed to black from head to toe - not dark blue like before, but true black. Spike-tipped tendrils shot out from his back, shoulders, and arms. He looked as monstrous as Carnage now. This was a power Spidey hadn't used since the battle with the Hobgoblin: Rage Mode.

"The only one going down is you!" Spidey yelled.

Though Spidey couldn't see it, Carnage's real face grinned to match his bestial mask. "That's more like it!"

The two bio-suit wearers launched themselves at each other. Carnage's arms were a blur, swiping with his scalpel fingers. Spidey's suit acted as armor. That combined with his driven focus on attacking, Spidey barely felt the slashes. His powerful arms slammed into his opponent. His extra limbs slashed and Carnage slashed back. There was no give on either side.

However, they didn't have long to fight before the Green Goblin came back. He was carrying a weapon shaped uncomfortably similar to a bazooka. The two were so immersed in their fight they didn't even notice.

The Goblin jumped down from his glider, planted his feet firmly on the floor, aimed at the intertwined combatants, and fired. But the weapon wasn't really a bazooka. It didn't shoot missiles - It shot sonic vibrations.

"Aahhh!"

"Augghh!"

Spidey and Carnage instantly stopped fighting and covered their ears. Their suits rippled along their skins, matching their pain. It didn't really matter where the Goblin aimed; the sound filled the entire room up to the roof of the building. Even Backyard and Quarter winced from their hiding spot.

Backyard went back to the railing and looked down at the scene. Spidey dropped out of Rage Mode and collapsed on the floor. Carnage was still staggering around, covering his ears and thrashing his head.

"Why is the sound hurting Spider-Man more than the other one?" He yelled to be heard over the deep bass.

Though it was directed at Quarter, Mr. Osborn answered through the myriad monitors. "_It's possible that, unlike Spider-Man, Carnage is merely wearing his bio-suit and hasn't made a permanent bond yet. Even so, it DOES hurt him._"

Carnage slowly staggered towards the Goblin. The Goblin held his ground and kept the sonic weapon aimed directly at him. The closer proximity clearly caused more damage for each step Carnage took. But he slowly gathered his strength... and then shot a tendril from his hand. It tore precisely through the length of the weapon.

The sound groaned and died down. All was silent.

"That... was a most... _provoking_... thing," Carnage growled.

The Goblin lowered the now-useless device. If he was panicking, he hid it well.

Carnage brandished a claw. He took a step forward... and then he wobbled. He kept his balance, but...

"On second thought," he said in a voice that sounded like he was trying not to throw up, "we'll finish this later. 'Sides, I have what I came for."

He glanced over his shoulder. Spidey was slowly trying to get to his feet.

"See ya later, Spider-Face. Good luck trying to stop my evil plans, and all that."

Carnage shot a line of his red webbing straight up. It reached all the way to the ceiling, and then it retracted and pulled Carnage up like a zip line. He quickly escaped through an air vent.

Once he was gone, Backyard and Quarter rushed down the stairs and tried to help Spidey to his feet. But he jerked his arm away and got up on his own, glaring at the roof.

"That's the second time I watched that creep run away gloating."

The sore loser feeling was only getting worse.

Mr. Osborn's voice resumed. "_Mr. Jones, get the rest of the platoon to the intensive care unit. I'll send some people to assist you._"

The video screens suddenly went blank, save one. Osborn's face was still showing on the display closest to the trio."_And also, Mr. Backyard, Ms. Quarter, and Mr. Spider-Man, please come to my office. There is something I must discuss with you as soon as possible_."

And then there were none.

_**To be continued...**_

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes<strong>: (3/16/2013) When I first started the Dual Identity series (waaaay back then), I never intended Backyard and Quarter to be anything more than a plot device. And yet they keep coming back. I really didn't see that coming. It's not that I like them, but they somehow became important to the story.

On an unrelated note, I wonder if anyone noticed the Green Goblin's name?

Special Shout-Out to Paradise Alley for reviewing.

**Disclaimer**: I based "Rage Mode" from the feature in the video game "Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions," which I do not own.


	15. C2 Diagnosis

"[Referring to mankind] His psyche should be studied, because we are the origin of all coming evil." -Carl Jung

_**Carnage Part 2 - Diagnosis**_

Backyard, Quarter, and Spidey slowly walked down the corridor towards Osborn's office.

"You know," Spidey spoke to their backs, "for such a big building, it seems like this place has more hallways than rooms."

The scientists didn't laugh.

"So... that loud guy on the TVs is your boss. He probably wants my super-suit back then. You told him that it doesn't come off, right?"

"Actually, Mr. Osborn told us before that he wants you to have it," Quarter answered.

"Then what's this meeting about?"

"Who knows? There's no way of knowing what that man is thinking."

They came to the double doors at the end of the hallway and entered. The room beyond was wide and open. Windows that revealed the night sky made up the entire far wall. In front of that, Norman Osborn sat at his desk, with an impeccable suit and a broad smile. An impassive dark-skinned man stood at his side, wearing SWAT armor and holding his helmet under his arm.

"And why are the biggest rooms the ones with the least stuff in it?" Spidey said, glancing around. Osborn had the only chair in the room.

"Welcome, Spider-Man. We meet at last. My name is Norman Osborn." He proudly gestured to his right. "You've already met the head of my Goblin security force, and until the rest of his group recovers, the only member."

"We've met," he deadpanned. "He was the one shooting missiles at me and splitting my skull open."

The Goblin member didn't respond. He didn't even look at the boy.

"You have quite the reputation, Spider-Man," Osborn continued. "Every criminal in the city, from petty muggers to mob bosses, has tried to defeat you, only to fail. You brought the Kingpin's dark actions into the spotlight, and while he made bail, he is unable to act due to careful police monitoring. You caught the Chameleon, an international terrorist, and he is in custody of the FBI. Even the Hobgoblin and his powerful weaponry were helpless before you, and he is still in prison... Spider-Man, do you know the _reason_ for your string of successes?"

He shrugged. "'Cause I'm _better_ than all of them."

Osborn stopped and stared for a second. Then he laughed and enthusiastically nodded. "Yes! Good answer! Even without your powers, your confidence alone would be a strong weapon. But _with_ your powers, you're invincible!"

He pointed dramatically at the two scientists. "It was _inspired_ to graft animal DNA onto the organic nano-tech. Speed, reflexes, proportional strength, equilibrium, webbing, clinging to surfaces, and more all obtained in one swoop! Just wearing the suit over your hands reinforces the joints, like the tape on a boxer's fists. And the usefulness of your 'danger sense' cannot be overstated. All your powers together make constant street fights not only possible but winnable!

"However... spiders are hunters, not brawlers. Spiders set traps, sneak through barriers, hide in darkness, and wait for that single perfect moment. This is all reflected in your powers as well. The fact that you're so strong in battle is little more than a happy coincidence. But Protoform X is different. It doesn't imitate an animal, but a weapon. Do you understand what that means? ...The difference between you and Carnage is the difference between 'stealth' and 'assault'."

In other words, Spidey was no match in a one-on-one fight. That night he went into Rage Mode, Carnage did not, and they were just barely even.

Osborn continued, growing continually more frustrated. "Your powers can be used for infiltration or - no, _any number_ of purposes. But Protoform X is a weapon only. The way it is now, it has no use except to destroy! And it's now in the hands of the criminal element! This is my worst fear come true!"

He suddenly turned his swivel chair around and stared out the windows. "I read about Carnage's exploits last night. He seized control of a pre-existing gang, and used them to terrorize innocent people. I honestly did not see that coming. And he managed it using only a single explosive."

"The bomb was fake, actually," Spidey interjected.

"Even worse! He caused that much chaos with nothing at all! And now he has Protoform X! This is undeniably the worst-case scenario!"

Osborn faced the trio again and stood up. "I'M OFFICIALLY TICKED OFF! Carnage and his bio-suit must be captured, dead or alive, as soon as possible! No, faster than possible! He cannot be allowed to keep it any longer!"

After a rare moment of silence, Spidey spoke up.

"So... in summary... Carnage needs to be stopped. I kinda knew all that _before_ your long-winded ranting."

Osborn calmly sat down again. "The extremity of this disaster cannot be overstated. Besides, when you're the head of your own multi-billion dollar company, you're allowed to rant as much as you like.

"Anyway, Spider-Man, I want your help on this case. We'll pursue our own leads, of course, but I want you to look for Carnage on your end as well. And if you bring him and the bio-suit back to me, I'll let you keep the bio-suit _you_ stole from this lab. No strings attached."

Spidey put his hands on his hips. "You were going to do that anyway!"

Osborn smiled. "And capturing Carnage would be such a nice way of saying 'thank you'!"

The vigilante sighed. "Well, no point arguing. I was gonna go after him anyway... I have a score to settle."

"Um... Mr. Osborn?" Backyard finally spoke up.

"Yes?"

"Mr. Osborn, I thought Protoform X was an incomplete failure. When - _why_ - did you begin working on it again?"

Osborn and the Goblin member glanced at each other. It was notably the first time the security man moved, even if just his eyes.

But all Osborn said was, "That's classified."

"...Oh."

He continued. "But I can say that we got it to work, although testing was still ongoing when Carnage stole it. It _shouldn't_ fuse with his body no matter how much he uses it... but there's no way to be certain. That's just one more reason to get it away from him as soon as possible. Honestly... It was _not_ supposed to leave this lab."

Spidey walked towards the window. "Well, Ozzy-"

"I don't like that. Don't call me that."

"Okay, Normy-"

"That I can live with."

He opened the window. "If you don't have another speech to make, I'm gonna get going."

"Best of luck, Spider-Man."

Spidey didn't respond. He just swung out.

* * *

><p>A surprise was waiting for Peter the next morning. He checked his book of messages like always, but didn't actually expect Spidey to have written anything.<p>

However Spidey had written a few pages worth. He told Peter everything that happened the last few nights. About meeting Carnage, and when Carnage gained powers like his.

_I'm not writing all this because of that note you left. It's because I need your help. Carnage already beat me twice. I won't get the upper hand unless I take whatever help you can give me. Help me find him_.

The message went on to explain that Peter could probably recognize Carnage with the Spider Sense. It reacted to Carnage even before he got a weapon.

"It reacted to _him_ instead of something he had?" Peter muttered as he read.

"But that sounds like Cletus Kasady... Was Harry _right_ about him?"

* * *

><p>Spidey didn't realize that after he left, and before Peter got the message, the conversation at Oscorp continued.<p>

The Goblin member spoke after locking the window. "Sir, I don't believe it was necessary to get Spider-Man involved. We should be able to apprehend Carnage by ourselves."

"Of course it's not _necessary_, but any little bit helps," Osborn responded.

"But how are we supposed to stop Carnage?" Backyard asked.

"We can't even try until we find him," Quarter added. "We need to figure out who he is."

"There's no need for that. I already know who he is."

The scientists stared at their boss. "You do?!"

"I do."

"How?!"

"Simple." He looked back at them, completely serious. "I know everything."

"Um, okay... So who is he?"

Osborn stared for another second. "Let's just say... It's in my best interest to keep that a secret."

He turned his chair around again. Then he took an item out of his pocket and examined it carefully.

It was the "brain pedometer" Carnage had the previous night.

Osborn put it back in his pocket. "And if we can't capture him... There's always Plan B."

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes<strong>: (3/23/2013) I made sure to mention what happened to the three supervillains from "Dual Identity," since I don't think I ever explained that before.

**Disclaimer**: I'm not sure how obvious I made it, but I based this version of Norman Osborn on President Kougami from "Kamen Rider OOO," which I do not own.


	16. C3 The Truth

"I wanted to find out whether other people had undergone similar experiences. I never succeeded in discovering so much as a trace of them in others. As a result, I had the feeling that I was either outlawed or elect, accursed or blessed." -Carl Jung

_**Carnage Part 3 - The Truth About Cletus Kasady**_

Peter was turning it over in his head all morning - even though he was supposed to be concentrating on the teacher's lectures. He tapped his pencil on his notebook and tried to think of the missing puzzle piece.

For the very first time since Spidey appeared, he asked Peter for help. That was how seriously - how personally - he took stopping Carnage. Spidey wanted Peter to investigate Carnage in the daytime, something Spidey couldn't do alone. He had no way of knowing that the answer was already given to Peter on a platter.

Harry explicitly told Peter that Carnage was Cletus Kasady. His sixth sense corroborated this. He _should_ just relay this to Spidey, but...

"It's not enough," he quietly muttered at his desk.

Peter knew Carnage's identity, but not his intentions. And unless he figured that out, Peter felt like he didn't understand anything at all. Gwen always hated being left in the dark. Maybe it spread to Peter?

He could actually understand other criminals, a little. They were usually driven by greed or revenge. The Hobgoblin and the Chameleon were like that, but Carnage was different.

Carnage told Spidey he was a Supervillain "just because he wanted it." Harry said Cletus hurt people because he didn't care about them. Neither was a good explanation, because it made no sense. He injured several classmates at his old school while never getting caught or even suspected. He organized a hostage situation the police were powerless to stop. And he snuck into a top-secret research facility and stole its most valuable subject.

It made no sense at all to think that these were random acts of violence. They were premeditated. They were difficult. There had to be a reason for it. And Carnage admitted to having a master plan.

Carnage was after _something_.

Peter was missing _something!_

But no matter how much he concentrated, he couldn't figure out what. He didn't have all the facts.

There was something else that bothered Peter, too. The only reason Harry didn't turn Cletus over to the police was because he had no solid proof. Despite that, Harry was convinced beyond all doubt that Cletus was hurting people. And he hated Cletus with a passion.

...So why didn't he try to stop Cletus himself?

Was Harry afraid of him? Or... was he waiting for something to happen?

_Of course I don't understand Cletus_, Peter thought. _I just realized I've never even had a real conversation with him_.

Thinking about this in his head wouldn't get Peter anywhere. He decided nothing would get solved until he took action. Everything he knew about Cletus came from a secondhand source. If Peter wanted all the facts, he had to get them directly.

He needed to talk to Cletus.

* * *

><p>Once the last class ended, Peter briefly told Gwen that they couldn't walk home together because he had something you-know-who related to take care of, and he would explain everything later. She understood.<p>

Peter was careful not to see Harry at all. If he suspected that Peter was trying to get involved, he would only try to stop him, again.

It took a little while to find Cletus. After asking several underclassmen, most of which didn't know where he was either (As it turns out, Cletus never spoke to his classmates, and several of them were surprised to find out the transfer student even existed), Peter eventually got a lead on where he was headed. Peter left school grounds and ran down the sidewalk in the direction Cletus was last seen.

_This probably won't answer my questions - It's not like he'll make a big confession. But if I spend time with him, I might notice something Spidey overlooked. All I have to do is start a conversation and casually ask about his background without making him suspicious_.

"Hey, Cletus!"

The redheaded boy stopped walking and turned around, eyes wide and curious.

Once Peter caught up, he continued. "You're Cletus Kasady, right?"

"Yeah. Why?"

"I-" Peter stopped. He just realized something.

_My sixth sense isn't reacting_.

Peter checked again, but he couldn't sense _anything_ dangerous from him. And yet the first time they met, he got such an extreme reaction when Cletus wasn't even doing anything. This time Cletus seemed as normal as anyone else.

What was going on?

"U-Uh," _I can't afford to mess up now_, "I heard you were new in town, and I just wanted to make sure you were adjusting well to the school."

"Yes, I am." He nodded casually.

He seemed different to Peter's other senses too. Before, Cletus was completely emotionless, even robotic. His gaze could burn holes through people. But this person wasn't like that. He was _calm_, but not blank. Wide-eyed and innocent. His expression was warm, but his eyes... were just a little bit sad.

But maybe Peter was imagining that last part.

"My name's Peter. We met the other day, remember?"

"No," he bluntly answered. "Sorry, but I can't remember everyone I meet."

"I see..."

"Sorry, I don't want to be rude, but if that's all I'd like to get home now." He turned without waiting for a response.

"H-Hold on!" Peter ran to his side and kept pace with him. "I'm not trying to bother you. I just wanted to talk."

"Talk? With me?"

"Yeah."

"Why me?" He looked really confused, like he couldn't imagine why someone would want to hang out with him.

He seemed really innocent. It was the complete opposite of Peter's first impression... and everything Harry ever told him since then.

Peter had a cover story prepared. "Just because you're the new kid. I didn't want you to feel unwelcome. Besides, I'm really shy myself, so I'm trying to fix that."

Cletus nodded. He seemed to buy it. But the next thing he said was, "You probably shouldn't get attached to me."

Peter wasn't expecting that. "Are you planning on moving again?"

"No."

_But that's not what you said the other day_, Peter thought.

"If you get involved, I might cause trouble for you," Cletus said. "It's just a feeling I have."

The reality was completely different than what Harry said it was. It gave Peter more questions than he started with.

Was Cletus _not_ Carnage after all?

But then who else if not him?

Before Peter could ponder this more, a long black car suddenly pulled up alongside them. The driver got out and looked at the boys. He was an impassive, dark-skinned man.

Peter was certain he never saw the man before, but he still seemed familiar. That might mean he's someone Spidey met.

"Cletus Kasady?" the driver asked.

"Yes," he answered.

The driver opened the passenger door. "I work for Norman Osborn. He's requested to speak with you."

Cletus stared at the stranger for a moment, then he nodded his head in a submissive way. "Okay."

"Wait, what?!" Peter grabbed his arm as he stepped forward. "You can't just let some strange guy pick you up like that!"

"It's okay." But Cletus' expression was despondent. It wasn't okay; he merely surrendered to it.

"He doesn't have to go anywhere with you," Peter told the driver. "I don't know what's going on but-"

"Peter..."

Cletus pulled his arm away from the other boy. Then he smiled. "Peter, you're a really nice person... That's why you shouldn't get involved with me."

He didn't understand this at all.

Cletus tried walking away again, but this time Peter grabbed the bottom of his shirt. "Just one more thing."

The redhead looked over his shoulder.

"Just... _be careful_," Peter said. Then he let go.

Cletus got into the black car without another word. The driver calmly closed the door behind him, and then he entered the car himself and drove away, leaving Peter alone.

Peter quickly took a handheld device out of his backpack. He extended the antenna and looked at the screen.

Nobody noticed that Peter stuck an electronic bug onto Cletus' shirt. Peter invented the Tracers and their Scanner a while ago, in case Spidey ever needed them for his work. It was practically a toy, but if he stayed within range, he would be able to keep tabs on Cletus.

However, in order to stay in the range of a moving car, Peter would need to rely on a special mode of transportation.

* * *

><p>A young man in a Spider-Man costume jumped from rooftop to rooftop. He stopped frequently to recheck the handheld scanner, or search for the car with his own eyes. He avoided web slinging unless it was absolutely necessary - partly to stay hidden, partly to concentrate more on spying, and partly out of immeasurable fear of falling.<p>

This was the first time Peter used Spidey's costume while being Peter on the inside. He never practiced with his powers and had no actual recollection of Spidey practicing, so he had to rely solely on muscle memory. It seemed to be working pretty well. After all, Spidey only learned it in one night, too.

_It sort of feels like I'm impersonating someone_, Peter thought. _Is this what Spidey feels like when he's _not_ in costume?_

The black car drove into a construction site. The work was apparently on hiatus - there were no other people or equipment inside. It was nothing but half-finished stone walls and dusty grounds. Very large, very barren. Peter carefully followed them from the air. He waited for the best moment, and quickly swung onto the tallest almost-building in the site.

The driver parked the car and both occupants stepped out.

"I thought we were going to Oscorp?" Cletus asked.

"You're not allowed to enter Oscorp ever again. Mr. Osborn will speak with you here."

"I see... No witnesses."

"That's right."

Peter spied on them from above, peeking around the edge of a high wall.

The driver positioned a laptop on the hood of the car. "Stand over there," he instructed. Cletus politely walked about fifteen feet away from the car and turned back to face the screen. The driver moved to the side of the computer, facing Cletus.

Once the scene was set, the computer screen lit up, revealing Norman Osborn's face. "Good afternoon, Mr. Kasady."

"Good afternoon," he replied with a resigned tone.

"I hope you don't mind if we get right down to business," Osborn continued. "You know why you're here, right?"

"You're going to execute me."

"What? No. Don't be morbid. My _first_ priority is to get back what was stolen from me. I can't do that if you're dead... At least I don't think I can." He stopped to wonder for a moment, but quickly resumed. "Carnage is too difficult to deal with directly, so I'm dealing with you instead. After all, you're his accomplice, of sorts."

"I'm _not_ his accomplice," Cletus shot back. "If he told you I am, he's lying. I'm not involved in what he does."

"But the fact remains that you're my only connection to Carnage," Osborn replied. "You may not support him, but I must use you as an intermediary. You understand."

Peter, still in his hiding spot, narrowed his eyes.

_So Cletus ISN'T Carnage after all. Harry WAS wrong. But he does know Carnage, somehow._

"So tell me, where is the bio-suit right now?" Osborn demanded.

"Is that the thing Carnage stole from you?" Cletus asked.

"It is. Did Carnage keep it on, or did he store it in some secret place?"

"...I don't know."

"Are there any places Carnage would be likely to hide something?"

"I don't know."

"Did he force you to lie?"

"No! I'm not covering for him."

"Then did he leave the suit on after all?"

"I don't know! Carnage doesn't tell me things like that. I swear, _I don't know!_"

Everyone was silent for a while.

Then the driver scoffed. It did not go unnoticed.

"Is something on your mind, Mr. Jones?" Osborn asked.

He moved to face the laptop screen. "Sir, do you really believe this kid's story?"

"Don't you?"

He hesitated.

Osborn sensed the unspoken question. "Yes, you may speak freely," he said with an eye roll.

"Of course not! It's _obvious_ that Carnage is Cletus Kasady himself! Can't you see he's just blaming someone else to get out of trouble?!"

"That's not true!" Cletus desperately cried out.

"Indeed," Osborn said. "Carnage and Mr. Kasady _are_ different people. I've confirmed it myself."

"Are you... sure?"

"Yes," he said without a bit of hesitation.

Osborn's insistence confused his assistant, but he quickly resumed his argument. "Sir, even if his story is true, everything is _still_ Cletus' own fault."

Those words were like an electric shock to Cletus' spinal cord. "My... fault...?"

"That's rather harsh, Mr. Jones."

"It's not... my fault!"

He turned back to Cletus. "The so-called Carnage is obsessed with you. So it's not a stretch to say that everything he did is because of you."

The redhead bit his lip. "That's not the same as it being my fault."

"If you didn't exist, then Carnage never would have started these crimes. Whether you're Carnage or not, that is an undeniable fact."

It was getting a lot harder for Peter to watch this silently.

Cletus lowered his head and clenched his fists. "Don't you think I know that? ...But it's not like I wanted any of this to happen."

"Are you saying it was inevitable?" Osborn's assistant asked, lacking both anger and gentility. "If that's the case, then who exactly is supposed to take responsibility for what happened?"

Cletus couldn't answer. And everything was silent again.

This time, Osborn was the one to break it with a frustrated sigh. "Mr. Kasady, would you please call Carnage here?"

He snapped his head back up. "What?!"

"I still need to get the bio-suit back. If you can't give me any leads, the only other option is to negotiate with him directly."

Growing scared, Cletus took a step backwards.

The assistant took a gun out of his coat. "If you don't call him, I'm prepared to _make_ you."

That was when Peter couldn't wait anymore.

"STOP IT!"

Peter leapt down from his hiding spot and landed squarely between Cletus and his interrogators. It was a shock for everyone.

"Well, well. It seems we had a fly on the wall - sort of," Osborn murmured.

"I don't know what's going on," Peter started, "no, it's _because_ I don't understand that I can't just sit back and watch this!"

"This has nothing to do with you, Spider-Man," Osborn's assistant said. "Don't get involved."

"You're wrong," Peter responded. "A lot of people have been telling me not to get involved, but I just realized something... Getting involved isn't something you choose. It's something that happens. And I've probably been a part of this since I first heard of Cletus Kasady."

Cletus just stared at the costumed newcomer in confusion.

"If you knew who that kid was, you wouldn't be protecting him."

Peter's sixth sense flared, a second before the other man aimed his gun at Cletus. The redhead paled.

"NO!"

Peter jumped at the shooter, pushing his arm away. A red laser flashed through the air. Peter looked over his shoulder.

The shot didn't touch Cletus, but it came close. The boy fell to his knees, and then down on his face. He fainted on the spot.

Peter turned back and grabbed the gun out of the man's hand. "What is wrong with you?!"

"That's a laser gun," he callously replied. "The damage wouldn't have been lethal."

"That's no excuse!" He threw the gun on the ground.

"That's not your decision," he shot back. "Don't act like you can give orders when you don't know the situation!"

"I don't care what the situation is or how bad you want your stupid suit back! You don't have the right to-"

Something interrupted Peter. It was a feeling. A silent aura of danger was emanating from behind him. It was vague, but powerful... and familiar. He turned around. "This is..."

Hector Jones, who didn't have a danger sense; and even Norman Osborn himself, who was only watching the scene through a webcam; also seemed to sense the change in atmosphere. "He's here," Osborn said.

The "danger" was coming from Cletus' collapsed body.

A few moments later, strands of red and black gel appeared and started wrapping up the body, while the boy pushed himself to his feet. He staggered drowsily like someone who had been sleeping for a long time.

"I see," Osborn muttered. "So Carnage didn't take the suit off after all. He just left it in stealth mode."

"Carnage?" Peter stared at the computer. "But you said he _wasn't_ Carnage."

"I never said that. I said Carnage and Mr. Kasady were different people."

"So he is but he isn't? They can't both be true. That's like saying..."

Peter felt like his heart skipped a beat. He looked back to the other boy, now in full costume.

_No way_...

The person in the red costume glanced at the barren surroundings. "Why am I here?" he hissed in anger.

Hector hurriedly opened the trunk of the car. Inside were his helmet and the folded Goblin Glider, which quickly floated out and extended its wings, preparing for battle. But Peter was frozen to the spot.

_No way, no way, no way, no way, no way, no way, no way_...

The being they were looking at... It was in Cletus' body... but it wasn't Cletus.

Carnage glared at the others. "Why were you TALKING WITH HIM?!" Spike-tipped whips shot out from his fingers.

And that was when Peter remembered to move. He dodged behind the black car. The car protected him completely, but it had several new holes to show for it. The Goblin pilot hopped on his machine and took to the air.

Peter suddenly understood everything. This was why his sixth sense had two different reactions to the same body.

This was the real reason why Carnage wanted to be a Supervillain... It was to establish a concept of his own identity... Exactly like Spidey did...

_Cletus is exactly like me..._

_Cletus and Carnage are exactly like _us_...!_

The red monster jumped over the car and landed directly in front of his antithesis. "You're a lot nosier than I pegged you for, Spider-Face. You weren't supposed to learn my secret yet."

Peter forgot himself and grabbed Carnage by the shoulders, shaking him. "Carnage, is it true?! Are you Cletus' alter? Do you have dissociative identity disorder?!"

"SHUT UP!" Carnage head butted Peter, forcing him away. "Shut your mouth! Don't talk to me about him!"

Carnage swiped at Peter with his scalpel fingers. He jumped away from each grab. He may have had superpowers from the bio-suit, but Peter had absolutely no fighting experience (unless you count running away from school bullies). He was too scared to do anything but dodge.

To his relief, the Green Goblin intervened. He split up the melee fighters with rapid-fire lasers, then the lasers followed Carnage as he ran.

Carnage turned abruptly and swung his whips into the air. The glider stopped firing and moved higher, trying to get out of Carnage's reach.

"Mr. Jones!" Osborn struggled to see the action through the computer screen. "That's my last glider! Don't you dare get it broken!"

"Don't you think I'm trying?"

"Carnage! I want to negotiate the return of that bio-suit! You know I can match any price you name. Stop fighting and-"

"Shut up, man!" Carnage shouted at the laptop. "You can't _BUY_ me! There's only one thing I want, and that's to _kill Cletus Kasady!_" He ended the negotiation by punching his claw through the screen.

"That kid has no appreciation for how expensive our equipment is," the Goblin growled.

He flew down low and fired a barrage of small missiles. Carnage tried swatting at them with his long tentacles. Some were deflected. Many weren't. They struck him and the whole area around him, kicking up dust and smoke into the air.

The Goblin flew through the cloud to clear the smoke faster. But by the time the scene was visible again, he was the only one there. Carnage and Spider-Man had both snuck away.

* * *

><p>Peter was in civilian clothes again, running down the sidewalk as fast as he could. He ducked into an alleyway only when he couldn't run anymore. He leaned against the wall and slowly slid to the ground. Peter didn't hear any screaming from the other pedestrians, so he guessed Carnage wasn't following him - not in costume, at least.<p>

_It can't be_... Peter could barely hear his own thoughts over the sound of his panting and the heartbeat in his ears. _It's impossible, but it's real. Cletus has DID... There's two people in this city with DID_...

_He has a bio-suit... Carnage and Cletus are exactly like Spidey and me... but Carnage is dealing with the frustration by being a Supervillain..._

"What... What am I supposed to do now?"

* * *

><p>At that moment, Carnage was the mirror image of Peter. Hiding in civilian clothes, he was standing in another alley in a different part of the city.<p>

He banged his fist against the brick wall. "Man, what the hell was that ABOUT?! Osborn, Cletus, AND Spider-Man were meeting each other?! Why don't I just call EVERYBODY I know so they can ALL get in my way?!"

Carnage kicked the garbage dumpster. It hurt, but Cletus would feel it later, so that made it okay.

"Never expected Spider-Face to know what 'dissociative identity disorder' was... Well, I guess it's not a secret. I WAS gonna tell him eventually, but damn. He might actually have a brain inside that mask."

He shouted up into the sky.

"Cletus! I don't know if you'll remember any of this, but if you think Spider-Face can save you, you're _KIDDING YOURSELF!_ I'm going to _UTTERLY DESTROY YOU!_"

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes<strong>: (4/21/2013) I'm so excited to finally have this chapter up! The big reveal!

I planned from the very beginning (and by "very beginning" I mean the **_VERY_** beginning - as in when I first thought of this Spider-Man AU, before I even got an account on this site) for Spidey and Pete's greatest enemy to also have a split personality. The only question was who that enemy would be, but even that was decided very early.

It couldn't be the Green Goblin. That'd be redundant. Venom was also too obvious a choice, but then I thought Carnage would be a little more interesting. Carnage is always introduced as a "Second Venom," when he's introduced at all. I thought it'd be neat to use him by himself.

Ever since I introduced Cletus in "Before the Calm," I was scared of someone figuring it out too soon and spoiling it in a review (how stupid, to be scared of reviews) so I was very careful not to drop any hints about the split personality. I only implied that Carnage knew _something_ he wasn't telling anyone. Also, I was sort of setting up Harry to be a red herring, but maybe that was too subtle (laughs). The problem with that is, now that I have revealed it, I'm worried it seems less "revealing" and more "impromptu." I assure you this is not some random plot twist I pulled out of my hat just now.

Special Shout-Out to JustNobody for reviewing again. Looking back, I guess Kougami!Osborn _was_ pretty obvious to anyone who watches Kamen Rider. Maybe I should tone it down... Nah.

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Spider-Man nor Carnage... Nor Peter Parker nor Cletus Kasady.


	17. C4 Kindred Spirit

"The meeting of two personalities is like the contact of two chemical substances; if there is any reaction, both are transformed." -Carl Jung

_**Carnage Part 4 - Kindred Spirit**_

It was very late at night. Spidey was in his regular costume, while Gwen and Mary Jane were dressed warmly. The three teenagers had their rendezvous on the rooftop of a small building in Queens. Though it was getting close to summertime, there was a chill in the air.

Spidey was very quiet as he absorbed the story the two girls just told him.

"Is that for real?" he said at last.

"Definitely," Mary Jane answered.

"Peter felt a little guilty exposing Cletus' secret," Gwen added. "But we all needed to know, and it was too big to keep to himself. So he told us, and we told you."

"So Carnage has D.I.D. like me and Pete. And now everyone's in on it. Hooray, hooray," Spidey said dryly. "And...? Now what? How does that help us stop him?"

"We know his legal name," Gwen said. "Should we turn him over to the police?"

"Oh, sure, Stacy. And it's totally _not_ gonna seem suspicious when we can't tell them how we found out."

"Then what are we supposed to do about it?"

Spidey didn't respond with a quip or a burst of anger. He just crossed his arms silently. Gwen understood exactly what he was thinking.

_Spidey is conflicted. Carnage is the only enemy. If he believes Carnage and Cletus are two separate people in one body, he won't know how to deal with them together._

_But if he doesn't believe it... if he treats them like a single person with two sides..._

_Spidey would be rejecting himself._

Mary Jane noticed the silence. And she decided it would be a good time to change the subject.

"Hey, there's something I've been wondering about," she spoke up. "Peter heard Carnage mention something about 'killing Cletus'."

"Yeah. So?"

She crossed her arms in thought. "Do you think... Carnage _doesn't_ know Cletus is his other self?"

Gwen was confused. "How couldn't he?"

"Spidey didn't know about Peter in the beginning."

"I didn't know much about anything back then - Don't say it," he pointed at Gwen. "Even if you hadn't told me, MJ, I would have figured it out _eventually_. What? Do you think Carnage heard Cletus' name and decided to hate him without knowing their connection?"

"I guess not. But killing someone in your own body... Doesn't that amount to suicide?"

"I've heard of split personality cases where some of the alters do self mutilation. Cutting, and stuff," Gwen said. "Maybe Carnage _wants_ to commit suicide?"

"No. Carnage doesn't want to die," Spidey said firmly. "He's having too much 'fun'."

"So he wants to kill Cletus but still use the body himself... Can alters do that?" Mary Jane looked at Gwen.

Gwen shrugged. "Cletus was still there yesterday. Maybe Carnage doesn't know how either?"

"But he's looking for a way," Spidey realized. "_That's_ his master plan."

"So do _we_ have a plan?" Mary Jane asked.

"We need to take back the suit he stole. If Carnage loses his powers, stopping him won't be as much of a problem," Spidey said.

"Peter was going to try and talk to Cletus again tomorrow," Gwen said. "If he finds anything, he'll leave you a message."

"Alright... Tomorrow."

Spidey walked to the edge of the roof. "I'm gonna go on my rounds - unless you're too scared to head home without me, MJ."

"You're only offering for her?"

"Well, you're way scarier than any mugger, Stacy."

Mary Jane replied before Gwen could. "We'll both be fine, thanks."

Spidey swung away on his webs.

Mary Jane walked towards the fire escape. Gwen stood still, watching Spidey until he was out of sight, then spoke up. "Hey, do you think... no, forget it."

"What?"

"You'll just think I'm being mean."

"No, tell me."

Gwen hesitated, but soon said, "Do you think we should be worried about Spidey? He found someone who's an alter just like him. In a way they're almost kin. You don't think, someday, Spidey will be tempted to team up with Carnage, do you?"

"No way," Mary replied right away. "And I'm not just saying that 'cause he's my friend. Spidey hates that Carnage guy. Having something in common won't change that. Besides, he doesn't want to be a criminal, he wants to be a _superhero_."

"Right. But even if he doesn't join him... If Carnage really does find a way to destroy an other self... _That_ might tempt Spidey a little."

"Sure, but it'd tempt Pete, too." She stepped onto the fire escape. "That makes it our job to keep both of them in line." She smiled. "Right?"

Gwen thought about this, then smiled and nodded. "You're right."

* * *

><p>For better or worse, the next day was a school day.<p>

Peter tried looking for Cletus during lunch, and again during study hall, but with no luck. The other boy was in a different grade and used a different schedule. Peter didn't expect getting alone with him to be easy, but it was still frustrating. Soon enough, classes ended and his only chance was to catch Cletus before he went home.

Peter decided to approach him under the pretext of "what happened with that stranger yesterday?" A natural excuse to act concerned about him. But even after he listened to whatever story Cletus would give, it might not be enough to learn about his other self or Protoform X. He needed a way to dig for information without driving Cletus away. And Peter walked through the halls desperately trying to think of one.

_Worst case scenario, I can reveal I found out about Carnage from "a source" and just threaten him to talk, but... I'd really rather not do that. Maybe I can skip school sometime and have Spidey search his house for clues. Except I don't know anything about who he lives with or even_-

"Excuse me."

"YAH!"

Peter jumped, and turned around as soon as his feet touched the ground again. Cletus Kasady was standing there. Calm, somber, and totally unfazed by Peter's jitteriness.

"Can we talk... alone?"

* * *

><p>Cletus led Peter to the school roof. The roof was supposed to be off limits, but the servicemen were lazy about keeping it locked. Lots of students snuck up here before... Or maybe this time Cletus broke the lock beforehand. There was no way to know.<p>

At any rate, he wasn't triggering the sixth sense, so Peter figured this really was the _Cletus_ part of Cletus.

The redheaded boy faced Peter directly. "Peter, I'm just going to ask straight out... Are you Spider-Man?"

Peter didn't even flinch. He just stared at Cletus calmly and calculatingly.

"...What makes you think that?"

"You were the only one who saw me get into that car yesterday, and then Spider-Man followed the car. Also..." He pulled a small Ziploc bag out of his pocket. Inside were the broken pieces of a tiny electronic device. "This is a tracking device, isn't it? I'm sorry, but Carnage found it and destroyed it."

_He admitted his connection to Carnage without caring about my answer_, Peter thought.

He put the useless bug back in his pocket. "If I'm wrong - if it's just a coincidence - I didn't mean to accuse you of anything. I'm only asking."

Peter was silent for a moment. "...You're not wrong."

He smiled faintly, self-depreciating. He walked past Cletus to the edge of the roof and looked outwards. "Considering what happened yesterday, I guess it wasn't that hard to figure out. Just don't tell anyone."

Cletus nodded. "I see, so it was you." He turned towards Peter again. "If you're worrying about that suit - that proto-whatever that gives Carnage powers - I don't have it. I'm sorry. I knew what to look for this time, but it's not on my body. Carnage must have figured it wasn't safe with me anymore, so he hid it somewhere before we switched back."

"Do you have any idea where it is? Even a _vague_ memory?"

"I already looked everywhere in my house. I don't know where else he would go... I'm sorry. I want to help, but I don't remember anything."

Peter sighed. Then he leaned forward, resting his arms on the short wall around the roof. "Well, it's not all bad. If Carnage hid it close to your house, then we might find it on our own. And if it's far away, then Carnage might not be able to get at it whenever he wants."

"So... So you believe me?"

"Hmm?"

"That man, Mr. Osborn's assistant, he thought the split personality was just an excuse to avoid responsibility. He didn't believe that Carnage wasn't me. I figure most people would think that... But not you?"

"I believe you, absolutely," Peter said firmly. But after that, he hesitated for a long time.

_Nothing will start unless I start it_.

"You see... I... I understand what you're going through."

"Huh?"

"When I admitted that I was Spider-Man it was both true and misleading. Spidey is me, but I'm not him... He's my alter... I have Dissociative Identity Disorder, too." Cletus was silent. Peter turned to face him. "So I guess-" He stopped when he saw the other boy's face.

Cletus was staring with his mouth gaping and his eyes bugging out. He looked very much like a little kid.

"Seriously?!"

"Uh, yes..."

Cletus ran up to him with his fists clenched eagerly. "Seriously?! Seriously, seriously?! You're seriously serious about this, seriously?! SERIOUSLY?!"

_Don't you have anything else to say?_

"SERI-"

"YES, ALREADY!"

He looked like a child staring at the tree on Christmas Morning. His face simply lit up... and then it darkened down. Cletus slumped to the floor in a black miasma of depression. "Damn it..." he moaned. "Why is yours a superhero...? That's nothing like what I have to deal with... It's not fair..." He slammed his fist against the concrete.

_Harry and I thought this kid was creepy and gloomy, but he actually has a pretty wide range of emotions, doesn't he?_

"U-Um... I-I guess it's not fair to compare my problems with yours, but I don't exactly have it easy either."

"You're just saying that to make me feel better," he mumbled.

"No, honest." Peter sat down on the ground next to him. "Spidey may fight crime, but he's not a paladin on a white horse. I have two friends who know my secret. They've talked with Spidey. And the things they tell me makes my skin crawl!"

"Really?"

"Really. He talks back, and he's a smart aleck, and never takes anything seriously. And he never tells me what's going on even though he's _supposed_ to leave me letters. I hear that and I think, 'Is this supposed to _me_? He was born from _my_ brain?'"

"What did you do or think to make an alter who's nothing like you?" Cletus gave words to Peter's thoughts. "You get the 'why me' feeling. Why did this happen to _me_?"

"Exactly. Spidey goes out hunting in the city and fights people. He actually beats people up! And I can't get mad because they're _technically_ bad guys, but still. And they fight back! I wake up in the morning and watch the news and I find out people were _shooting_ at _my body_ last night! That scares the daylight out of me!"

"I know, right?! It's supposed to be _your_ body, but you can't control what it does, and sometimes you don't even know what happens until it's over. It's terrifying!"

Peter watched Cletus as he spoke.

_He really gets it... Gwen listens and supports me... But Cletus_ gets it.

They went back and forth like this for a long time. Peter didn't care about the schedule he meticulously planned hour-by-hour. Though classes were over for the day, the school would remain open for various clubs, but they didn't care about that either.

Everything came out, effortlessly. The two boys compared their situations. Learning what they had in common. Learning what was unique. Peter found out that Carnage didn't come out every night or on a schedule like Spidey. He also learned that Carnage first came out several years ago, though Cletus wasn't sure of the exact time.

"So you don't remember what Carnage does, but he remembers everything you do?"

"I don't know. I'm sorry, I should have mentioned that at the very beginning. Your secrets might not be safe with me. But I'm not really sure."

"Why do you think Carnage has your memories?"

"Just... little things. Notes he leaves me. He taunts me. It just feels like he knows too much."

Cletus added, "He goes to school sometimes too. Pretending to be me."

"Really?!"

"Sometimes I wake up and the day's over. I miss everything. Doesn't that happen to you?"

"Spidey wouldn't want to go to school. He thinks it's boring. But everything's boring to him."

"Carnage doesn't go for the classes. I think he does it to watch people. Those things he's been doing - the robbery and the whole Supervillain thing - that's new. He used to be more secretive. Pretending to be me was like camouflage as he looked for a new victim."

Peter nodded his head.

_Now I see. That day when I first met "Cletus." It was actually Carnage sneaking into the school. He wasn't acting like himself because he didn't want to draw attention. And that's why he was so impassive. It means Carnage doesn't know how to convincingly portray Cletus_.

"Does anybody else know about you and him?" Peter asked.

"Some people. Mostly at my old home. It's not really a secret. But even when I told other people, they wouldn't believe me. Not really. But I _can't_ tell the police or... or check myself into a hospital... If I do that, Carnage said he'd get even more violent. Everyone around me is like a hostage. So the only thing I can do is stay away from everyone... Not get involved..."

They were silent for a moment. Then Cletus put on a faint smile and changed the subject. "Uh, does anyone know about you and Spidey?"

"No. It's an airtight secret for me. The only ones who know are Gwen and Mary Jane. _Now_ I tell Gwen everything, but they both found out my secret by accident... Come to think of it, you're the only person I ever confessed to."

"I..."

He hesitated.

"I'm really glad you told me, Peter."

Peter stood up and started walking to the door. "We should get going soon. We'll talk again when we have more time."

Cletus stood up too, but didn't follow him. "Okay. I'm gonna stay here for another minute."

Peter put his hand on the door handle. But then he thought of something, and turned back to Cletus. "I almost forgot... Carnage was saying something about a 'master plan.' Do you have any idea what that might be?"

"Um... no... Since we moved here a few weeks ago, he's been coming out almost everyday. It seems he was really busy with _something_. But I have no idea what. I'm sorry."

"Whatever it is, it probably involves that suit. We need to find it and get it away from him. If we do that everything will be easier. So even if you can't remember what he does, pay close attention to _where_ you regain consciousness, and where your memory stops. Carnage won't make it obvious, but we have to start somewhere."

"I'll... I'll do my best..." Cletus lowered his head. "I'm sorry. You and Mr. Osborn are trying so hard. Even though I want to stop Carnage most of all, I can't do much of anything..."

Peter stared at him. _Cletus has been suffering for such a long time_...

He ran over and placed his hands on Cletus' shoulders. "Cletus, I'm here for you, okay?!"

"Huh?"

"I'm here for you. My friends, Gwen and Mary Jane, they'll be here for you too. And Spidey, too - once I convince him. Carnage is the enemy, and he needs to be stopped. But _none_ of us blame _you_. Okay?"

Cletus didn't know what to say. He looked overwhelmed. In the end he just nodded his head and said, "Okay."

Peter smiled. He turned and exited the roof, closing the door quietly behind him.

Cletus stared at that door for a long time, left alone in his thoughts.

He suddenly kicked the air-conditioning unit with all his might.

_**CLANG!**_

The crashing sound was loud and echoing, and Cletus' words couldn't be heard over it.

"Damn it to Hell," Cletus hissed. "Are you _trying_ to make things more complicated?"

He forced his eyes closed and grit his teeth. "It was a mistake. I should never have talked to you... Not when everything is already over!"

* * *

><p>Peter ran into the bathroom and saw Harry washing his hands at the sink. "Good, you didn't go home yet!"<p>

"Were you looking for me?" Harry asked casually.

"It's - Oh!" Peter began looking under the other stalls.

Harry watched him, amused but confused. "What's up?"

Once Peter confirmed there was nobody else there, he ran up to Harry excitedly. "Harry, you were wrong about Cletus. It wasn't really him who did all those things. It sounds unbelievable, but he has a split personality!"

"Yeah, I know."

Harry nonchalantly dried his hands. Peter stared at him.

"You mean... you _knew_?"

"Yeah, I knew."

"How long?"

"The whole time."

Peter thought about this.

"You knew the whole time that Cletus and Carnage were different people?"

"If that's what you want to call it." He carelessly threw the paper towel away.

"Then why did you put all the blame on Cletus? Why didn't you tell me he had an alter?"

"I didn't think it was relevant."

"It's completely relevant!" Peter shouted. "Cletus is innocent, but you kept going on and on about what a bad person he was. You said he was dangerous!"

"I wasn't wrong, was I?" Harry was still nonchalant. He wouldn't even look at Peter. Instead he fixed his hair in the mirror. "Think of it as if he was carrying a bomb or a plague. Cletus himself is only the container, but does that make him any less of a threat?"

"...I can't believe I'm hearing this. So your solution is to just abandon him?"

"My solution is _not_ to draw Carnage's attention to me or my friends. Seriously Pete, I feel bad and all for Cletus, but the guy has a monster inside."

Peter was silent for a moment. Then, "...What about me?"

Harry froze. He glanced at Peter. "What _about_ you?"

"If I had a monster inside me, would we still be friends?" Peter firmly asked.

"Absolutely not," Harry firmly replied.

The two boys glared at each other.

Then Peter stormed out of the room without another word.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes<strong>: (5/23/2013) Cletus' comical reaction to finding out about Peter feels a little out of place to me, but I couldn't find a better way to get the ball rolling.

Thanks again to JustNobody for reviewing. There are other reviewers out there, right? ...Right? Anyway, it's not that Cletus is ignoring Carnage so much that Carnage won't accept any type of coexistence. Their relationship is something I've had in my head for so long and something I've hidden for so long that it feels weird putting it into words now. I tried to get out the important basics in this chapter, and I'll be explaining more details as the story goes on.


	18. C5 Harry

_**Carnage Part 5 - Harry Osborn's Past**_

The following story takes place the previous year, when Harry lived in New Jersey.

Harry Osborn was the ideal student: excellent grades, courteous to the teachers, and popular among his peers. It wasn't a stretch to say that there was no one in the school who disliked him. (Of course, he was fully aware that many people only liked him for his money. He expertly deflected their advances without ruffling any feathers.)

He was always able to read a person's feelings from their face. His talent to guess what you were thinking was so strong it could almost be called a superhuman ability. That's how he always knew exactly what to say, and exactly how to act, in order to make people like him.

He saw things in people nobody else noticed.

"Ugh... I'm so sick of biology," Michael moaned as he slumped over the table.

"Oh, shut up." Aaron picked through the food-like substance on his tray. "It's not like you listen to anything the teacher says anyway."

"I do so, and it nearly kills me."

"Your _exam scores_ kill you."

"What was his last score?" Harry innocently asked.

"Fifty-two," Aaron answered.

Harry patted Michael on the back. "Well, at least you got a wonderful personality!"

"Gee, thanks," Michael said dryly. "Dude, what's your secret?"

Harry spoke like he was reciting an often-quoted speech. "I attend all my classes. I take careful notes. I study with my textbooks and make flashcards. And I always wear sunscreen."

"Huh?"

"Do you ever bribe the teachers?" Michael teased.

Harry grinned wide and replied, "I'm sworn to confidentiality on that subject."

Michael laughed. And as he was laughing, something caught Harry's eye.

Across the cafeteria, a boy with curly red hair sat alone. He didn't have any food. He was clearly watching Harry and his friends, trying to hide a smile.

Harry raised an eyebrow. Suddenly, he heard a loud gasping from his side.

Aaron was clutching his chest. He had a panicked look on his face and was wheezing loudly.

"Aaron?" Michael looked worried.

The boy fell out of his chair and brought his tray crashing on the ground with him. His body shook and the gasping grew louder. Everyone in the cafeteria noticed came forward in a panicked crowd.

"Oh my God!" Michael instantly went down to his friend and grabbed his shoulders. "Aaron!? Someone help! He's choking!"

While reaching for Aaron's backpack Harry yelled, "He's not choking, he's going into anaphylactic shock." The backpack was left beside Aaron's chair when lunch started. Harry tore it open and dug through the contents as fast as he could.

"Be there, be there, be there, be there," he chanted. He quickly found an EpiPen. Shoving the backpack away, Harry pulled up the leg of Aaron's shorts and stabbed the pen into his thigh.

"One... Two... Three... Four... Five... Six..."

After ten seconds Harry took the autoinjector away. Aaron didn't open his eyes, but his spasms stopped and his breathing became calmer.

Harry let out a deep sigh of relief. Then he pointed to two random people in the crowd. "You call an ambulance... And you get the school nurse in the meantime."

Part of the crowd dispersed, but many stayed behind muttering to each other or just staring at the scene.

"My God, Harry," Michael whispered. "That was incredible."

"Hmm? Not really," he mumbled. "I was just copying what I saw on TV. The whole time, I was scared witless it wasn't gonna work."

"But how did you know he had an EpiPen in his backpack?"

"I didn't. I just hoped he did. I remembered Aaron has a really serious peanut allergy, so I hoped he might keep one handy."

"But lunch shouldn't have had any nuts in it..." Michael looked down at his fallen friend.

Harry suddenly remembered something. He stood up and looked across the cafeteria.

The redheaded boy got up from his seat and calmly walked towards the exit, still hiding a smile on his face.

Harry watched him every step of the way.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Two weeks later<strong>_.

Inside a school stairwell, on the landing between one floor and the next, a redheaded boy stared out through a small window.

He waited... and waited... and finally slammed his fist against the wall. "What the hell, man?! He didn't fall!"

"You mean the maintenance man on that ladder? Sorry to disappoint."

He spun around and backed against the wall. A moment later, he saw Harry nonchalantly coming up the steps with his arms crossed. "It takes more than a few loose screws to make a ladder fall apart - but just to be safe, I refastened them the moment you left."

The redhead regained his composure and shrugged. "I don't know what you could _possibly_ be talking about... Now if you'll excuse me."

Harry blocked his way. "Let me warn you, I'm extremely good at knowing when people are lying to me, so don't bother. And I've also been watching you extremely closely these last two weeks."

"Watching me do what?" he asked cautiously.

"Well, for starters, I heard about the Bunsen burner that malfunctioned and started a small fire in your class. I noticed a few other 'accidents' that you caused, too - I can only imagine how many I haven't noticed. Or are you still going to deny that you caused them?"

He looked Harry in the eye for several seconds. Then he gave him a toothy grin. "Empty your pockets."

Harry almost didn't flinch. "...Why?"

"I wanna make sure you're not bugged. I wouldn't wanna say anything _incriminating_ if it was getting recorded."

After he refused to move, the redhead added, "I could always search you myself..."

Harry hesitated a few more seconds, then he sighed and took out his smartphone.

The shorter boy burst out laughing and snatched the smartphone from his hand. "You really were trying to get dirt on me! Man, I thought I was just spouting BS! I guess you can never be too careful." He opened the window and tossed the phone outside. "You don't mind, right? You can always buy a new one. It must be nice to be rich."

He slammed the window shut and turned back to Harry with an unfriendly smile. "So... do you still want me to confess even if you have no way of proving it, Rich Boy?"

Harry was undeterred. "Sounds like you know who _I_ am. Now you should reciprocate the introduction. How many Cletus Kasadys are there?"

He blinked. "How... many?"

"I told you. I've been watching you _extremely_ closely. You're not alone up here, are you?" Harry tapped against his own temple. "There's you, the psycho sadist who enjoys hurting people... But sometimes there is another you, ignorant about the fake accidents, then ashamed when he hears someone gossip about it. It's not just an act or a persona, is it? But a completely separate ego... At least that's my theory. Care to rebuff it?"

He stared at Harry, almost speechless. "Man... I'm seriously impressed. Just by watching me from afar, without even talking to me, you noticed the difference between us... No one's _ever_ been able to do that before."

"I already know _which_ Cletus Kasady I'm speaking to," Harry resumed. "Now I'm curious _how many_ there are. Any siblings who cause trouble outside the school?"

"There're two of us - only. And don't call me Cletus. I don't want _his_ name. _He's_ nothing but a container for me. My name is Carnage."

"Carnage... Fitting name, considering you've been trying to kill people for two weeks right under everyone's noses."

"Now I really don't know what you're talking about. I never tried to kill anyone."

"Maybe your other tricks were non-lethal - and that's a big maybe for the fire in Chem. lab - but sending someone into anaphylactic shock? You must have known what eating peanut oil would do to Aaron. Why else would you sneak it into his food?"

"To make him uncomfortable for a minute, not dead."

"Ah, so you _did_ sneak peanut oil into his food." Carnage lost his smile and Harry gained one. "You must have, but I could never figure out when you had the chance. Would you mind explaining from the beginning?"

"Don't act all smug. What difference does it make if I confess to _you?_ The point is, man, I wanted that guy to survive. That's why I didn't steal his medicine. I love watching people suffer, but I wouldn't kill just _anyone_. My first murder has to be something _special_."

Harry's main objective was to get proof of Carnage's crimes. Barring that, learn as much as he could about him, trying to find something he could use against him.

Harry was excellent at guessing what people were thinking, but it wasn't magic. It involved trial and error. Carnage was a particularly frustrating case. Harry could sense he was suppressing _something_, but it was just barely out of his reach.

"Why did you stage those accidents? What's the point? What do you get out of it?"

"Why do I hurt people?" Carnage chuckled slowly. "For absolutely no good reason at all. I thought it would be fun. That's all there is."

"And that's why you don't try to kill them. If their pain ends, your fun ends."

"Heh heh... Maybe you're not the saint everyone thinks you are, Rich Boy. You seem to understand me pretty well."

"And the others don't?"

Carnage raised an eyebrow. "What others?"

"All the others... You were really surprised when I noticed the difference between you and Cletus... Nobody's ever noticed you before."

"You're wrong. People may not notice _us_, but they notice _me_. They notice the pain and destruction I leave behind. _That's_ who I am. I'm not a name or a body. I don't make carnage. I _am_ Carnage."

"Do you think you'd still be that way if you weren't attached to Cletus?"

"Absolutely!" he shouted. "I know it for a fact. Because I was like this even _before_ I knew that I was Cletus' alter."

"But it's not the same now, is it? You can't hide it. Even if not your personality, _something_ changed when you became aware of each other."

"Yeah, him. He used to be someone, before I showed up, but now he's my container and nothing more."

_Used to be someone?_

"Cletus is spineless. I taught him his place a long time ago."

_Cletus came before Carnage... Cletus was whole without Carnage_...

"It's fine. He never did anything worthwhile anyway. He was just an ordinary, normal person with an ordinary, normal life. That's boring. So I-"

Without thinking Harry blurted out, "Now I get it. You're jealous."

Carnage froze.

Everything froze.

The room almost seemed to get darker. Carnage started to tremble as he breathed, his stare drilling holes into Harry.

_Holy crap... I stepped on a volcano full of landmines_.

Carnage screamed. He lunged at Harry and pushed him to the ground by his throat.

"Shut up! Shut your damn mouth!" he screamed from his position above Harry.

His hands were tight around Harry's neck. Harry couldn't pull them off. But despite the whole situation, Harry grinned. "Heh... I hit a nerve," he wheezed. "Didn't I... Cletus Number Two?"

Carnage ironically looked more uncomfortable than Harry. Harry pressed his advantage. "It doesn't matter... what you do to me... It doesn't even... matter what you do to Cletus... You'll always... be _his_ other half... _His_ little add-on!"

"GO TO HELL!"

He slammed Harry's head against the concrete floor.

"_GO TO HELL!_"

He did it again, harder. He dug his thumbnails underneath Harry's jaw. Despite what Carnage said earlier, he was now seriously intending to murder Harry. Harry couldn't get any air at all. He started to see little specks in his vision.

"You can just die! _JUST DIE ALREADY!_"

"What's that shouting?!" a girl's voice cried from somewhere.

Carnage abruptly remembered where he was and let go of Harry. He quickly turned and ran up the stairwell.

Harry let out a hacking cough. He sat up and grabbed his own throat, still coughing and wheezing.

The girl came up to the landing from below. "What's happen-" Harry ignored her and stomped down the stairs. He and Carnage were both done for today.

* * *

><p>Harry was diagnosed with a concussion and skipped two days of school to recuperate.<p>

It was business as usual once he returned. He kept his ear to the ground for rumors of strange accidents and watched Carnage/Cletus from afar. But as far as Harry could tell, nothing happened in the time he was absent. Nothing still happened after he returned.

He and Carnage never spoke to each other again, but apparently Harry's message got across: Carnage wasn't as discreet as he thought. He couldn't do what he wanted unnoticed.

Carnage said he didn't hurt people (only) out of frustration. It was because he was a natural sadist. Just the same, he was also frustrated. He deeply hated the fact he was a secondary personality.

_Inferiority complex_, Harry thought. _But a true complex is a subconscious influence - something you're unaware of. I threw it in his face, so it stopped being a complex_.

_Carnage is just lashing out like a kid who can't have his way_.

Then at the end of the semester, Harry and his father moved to New York.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Present day<strong>_.

Debra, Flash, and Kong were sitting alone on the bleachers outside the football field.

"The school newspaper is ahead of their deadline for once, so that's less work for us," Debra said as she shifted through her papers. "But we still need to get our survey typed up before the end of the day."

"Oh, that's okay, Debbie, I already got that." Kong handed her the printout.

"Thank you, Kong. So that just leaves our personal projects. Flash, did you look up the transfer student's old school yet?"

Flash stared out across the field.

"Flash?"

"Huh?" He came out of his daze. "Oh, sorry, not yet."

"What's up?" Kong asked. "You seem really out of it today."

"Out of it...?" he repeated. "I guess so... I've been sorta depressed recently."

"Depressed?"

"We started the Investigation Team, what, months ago? And in all that time, have we ever gotten so much as a real lead on Spider-Man? _He_ was supposed to be our personal project, right?"

Kong replied, "Y-Yeah, things are slow. But, you know, that's just what happens when there's no info to work with. Spider-Man's hard to find. It doesn't mean we're bad investigators or anything."

Debra added, "Besides, we've researched several other interesting topics the school paper was able to use."

"Sure, the paper's thankful for us... but we only started that side stuff because our real goal turned up a big fat zero."

His harsh words made them silent. They couldn't deny it.

"We're a joke," Flash continued. "Some students are actually starting to make fun of us... I used to be mad at Parker for ditching us, but maybe he had the right idea. Maybe it'd be better if we quit now and made a clean break."

"Well... I know what you're saying," Debra spoke softly. "It's not as if I'm not discouraged too... But it'd be such a shame to quit now after we've come so far."

"Come so far? We're at square one and you know it. What do we have to show for our time?" He grabbed his backpack and stood up. "I'm tired. I'm gonna go home and soak in the shower. Talk to you later."

Debra and Kong were silent as Flash stepped down and walked away. The three people on the bleachers were never aware of the eavesdropper hiding beneath them. He had curly red hair... and he was _not_ Cletus.

"So those punks are looking for Spider-Man..." Carnage grinned wickedly and wrung his hands. "Ooh... I've just had the most _WONDERFUL_ idea..."

_**To be continued****...**_

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes<strong>: (5/31/2013) I actually feel a little bad for the Investigation Team. I got them started because I thought it'd be interesting, but then I had no idea what to do with them. I couldn't very well let them discover anything important that early in the story, so they just keep hitting dead ends. I plan on making them the "stars" of the next chapter as a sort of retribution.

**Edit**: With this chapter, the word count of "Double Life" has made it longer than "Dual Identity." I've come a long way...

**Disclaimer**: The idea came from an episode of "Spider-Man: the Animated Series" where Debra and Flash made a brief investigation into "weirdo stuff." (I believe the specific episode was "The Return or Kraven.") I do not own "Spider-Man: the Animated Series."


	19. C6 Connections

_**Carnage Part 6 - Connections Between People  
><strong>_

The spring semester was almost over, and the chill in the air was gone.

Mary Jane was walking away from the school. She turned a corner and barely stopped herself from bumping into someone. He seemed to be waiting for her.

"You're Mary Jane, right?" Cletus asked her.

"Yeah... And you must be Cletus."

He nodded. He was soft-spoken and polite, so Mary Jane trusted that it wasn't Carnage incognito.

"I wanted to meet you, at least once."

That surprised her. "Me?"

"Yes, you... Although, now that I'm here, I'm not sure what to say... I suppose I just wanted to see what kind of a person you are."

"Well, thanks, but," Mary Jane shifted her weight, a little embarrassed. "I'm not sure what to tell you either. It's like... what you see is what you get."

"Peter told me you were the first one to realize the connection between him and Spidey. So, the way I see it, that makes you the first person to accept that someone could be more than one person."

"Yeah, I guess I was, wasn't I? Though I never thought of it like that before."

"The way things work is funny, isn't it?" Cletus said as he lowered his eyes. "If I met you sooner, things might have turned out differently."

Mary Jane slapped him on the shoulder. "Hey, now, don't throw in the towel just yet. I know things look bad for you, but stick with us. We'll teach you how to beat the odds."

Cletus smiled. "Thanks, Mary Jane." Then he started to space out. He felt a little light-headed... A little sleepy...

But Mary Jane didn't notice. She walked past him. "Call me MJ. Anyway, I was on my way to meet up with Gwen and Pete. You wanna join us?"

She looked over her shoulder, but nobody was there.

"Cletus?"

She surveyed the area, but the person she was speaking to just a second ago was long gone.

"What did he mean by 'at least once'?"

* * *

><p>"Hmm?"<p>

As Gwen was walking towards her meeting, she noticed Debra and Kong sitting on a bench together. This was strange for two reasons.

One: It was rare to see Flash missing from their trio. Debra and Kong were so different, Gwen didn't even think they'd be friends if it weren't for Flash connecting them. Two: The two of them weren't doing anything. They merely sat and watched the scenery listlessly.

She approached the incomplete Investigation Team. "Is everything okay, you two?"

They finally noticed her. "Oh, hi Gwen," Debra said.

"Flash is down in the dumps, and it spread to us," Kong explained.

Gwen took a seat next to them. "Where is he?"

"Dunno," Kong said. "Prob'ly at home. He said he was gonna quit the team."

"You mean he's not looking for Spider-Man anymore?"

Gwen had mixed feelings about this. Secretly, it was excellent news for Peter and Spidey, and thus, Gwen too. But looking at the expressions of her other friends, they were really upset about it.

"You know, it might not be a bad thing," Gwen tried to say diplomatically. "It's not like you _needed_ to figure out his secret identity. Maybe you could just leave it alone."

"We can't give up now! It's a question of pride, Gwen! Pride!" Kong let his frustration out.

"But isn't pride our only reason left by now?" Debra spoke up. "I'm starting to think Flash had the right idea. Maybe it _was_ impossible for a bunch of ordinary students to figure out Spider-Man's secret identity..."

They were silent for a few moments, until a new voice caught their attention.

"Mm-hmm... So you guys want to meet Spider-Man?"

The voice seemed to come from above them. Then they heard him drop down behind the bench. The three students turned to look.

"AHH?!" Kong jumped up and pointed. The two girls were speechless.

A red and black costume that covered the whole body... A spider-web pattern on the chest... And large, white, almond-shaped eyes on his mask...

"You think _I_ could help with that?" Spider-Man pointed a thumb at himself.

Debra and Kong could only stare. They were thrilled. But Gwen wasn't thrilled... Her blood ran cold.

* * *

><p>"I just had the weirdest conversation with Cletus," Mary Jane told Peter as soon as she arrived. She sat down on the bench next to him.<p>

"What did he say?" Peter asked.

"Not much. It happened too fast. He just said that he wanted to meet me, then he took off." She collected her thoughts. "It's like... he had nothing to tell me right then, but he wanted to make a 'connection' with me, you know?"

Peter nodded his head. "I can see why he would be interested in you. He said that even when he told people about his split mind, they wouldn't accept it. He feels like nobody has ever accepted him before now..."

Peter explained to Mary Jane the last conversation he had with Harry.

"Harry really said that? About not being your friend?"

"Yes. He was only being hypothetical, but... I don't really want to see him for a while."

Mary Jane enthusiastically shook his hand. "Gwen's gonna jump for joy when she hears that! Congratulations!"

"Losing a best friend isn't something you congratulate people for," Peter dryly said as he pulled his hand away.

With her joke finished, Mary Jane stopped smiling. "But seriously, poor Cletus... Bullied by Carnage, abandoned by Harry... Speaking of which, why do you think Carnage wants to get rid of Cletus in the first place?"

"To be 'complete' is what I'm thinking."

"Complete?"

"Cletus is the main personality and Carnage came out later. Carnage probably feels like he's only 'part' of someone else. But he wouldn't feel like that if he were the only one in the body."

"That's stupid! You don't have to be alone to be an individual. Spidey knows that."

"Carnage isn't Spidey, is he?"

Mary Jane held her chin and changed the subject. "Okay, let's review our to-do list. Short term: Get rid of Carnage's superpower-suit. Long term: Figure out a way to stop Carnage's troublemaking without hurting Cletus... It sounds a lot shorter when I say it aloud like that."

"I also want to learn how he knew about Protoform X in the first place," Peter said.

"That too. Any theories?"

"Sort of... It has something to do with how he and Norman Osborn knew each other - from the beginning."

She raised both eyebrows. "You mean they don't just know _about_ each other, but actually met?"

"I don't know if they were friends or enemies or what, but they definitely met before. Mr. Osborn knew exactly what Carnage was. He was adamant that Carnage was separate from Cletus."

"Couldn't he have just learned that from Harry?"

"I don't think so," Peter answered. "Because that wouldn't explain how Carnage found Protoform X."

"So while Harry's dad was researching Carnage, Carnage was researching his inventions?"

"Yes. And when Carnage stole Protoform X, communication between them stopped."

Peter continued, "There are a lot of things people are acting mysterious about... I'm tired of being left in the dark."

"You sound just like Gwen. Speaking of which..." Mary Jane looked around. "Gwen's awfully late. That's not like her."

She didn't see Gwen, but Mary Jane found someone else she knew running their way at full speed.

"Hey, Flash!" Mary Jane tried to get his attention as he rushed by. "Flash, wait up! Where're you going?"

Flash's sneakers skidded on the sidewalk. He looked over his shoulder. "Oh, it's you. Look, I can't talk now. I just got a text from Debra."

"Is she okay?"

"What?" He was too jumpy to keep his thoughts straight. "Oh! Yeah, it's just - oh, man - You'll never believe this! Debra and Kong found Spider-Man! They're talking with him right now!"

"WHAT?!" "WHAT?!"

Mary Jane looked back at the seat beside her. But Peter was still right there, looking just as stunned as she was.

_**To be continued...**_

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes<strong>: (6/29/2013) This chapter was originally just the first half of the next chapter, but it was taking a while to finish so I decided to just put up the first half as-is. I'm proud of my recent one-update-a-month rate and I'm gonna try to keep it up.

Considering how the last chapter ended, I'm pretty sure everyone knows who that "Spider-Man" really is...

I think I scared off all the reviewers with my comment a few chapters back about not wanting them to spoil stuff. I only meant that about Cletus' multiple personalities. Please, review! Speculate all you like! I'm eager to hear whether you like these new developments or not.

**Disclaimer**: _"Stick with us. We'll teach you how to beat the odds."_ ...This line was paraphrased from something Mary Jane said in "Spider-Man: the Animated Series." (I think the specific episode was "Hydro-Man.") I do not own "Spider-Man: the Animated Series."


	20. C7 Thief

_**Carnage Part 7 - Identity Thief**_

Spider-Man brought the three students to the roof of a downtown building.

Debra, Kong, and Gwen stood together near the edge. Spider-Man casually paced along an imaginary line separating them and the door. A short wall wrapped around the perimeter. They were alone.

Spider-Man explained that he didn't want a big crowd of fans pestering him, so he refused to let them call anybody. He would only speak to the three of them.

Debra watched Gwen with a curious eye. Gwen insisted on coming with the two investigators, but she was so tense, as if she were scared of Spider-Man.

"I'm... afraid of heights," she said - an excuse that happened to be true.

"Don't worry, ma'am. I can protect you," Spider-Man said. Then he chuckled as if he made some kind of joke.

"Spider-Man, why did you decide to meet us now? We've been searching for you for so long..."

"Well, _I_ didn't know that. I only found out about your little gang yesterday - by accident. And I had some time to kill so I decided to drop by. I thought spending time with fans like you might be fun, that's all." He suddenly giggled. "'I thought it'd be fun.' That's starting to become my catchphrase, isn't it?"

The costumed boy paced along the roof while rocking his head. He was the picture of someone without a care in the world. If he weren't speaking so coherently, it might look like he was delirious.

"I like to _talk_ to people."

"That makes it easy for us to interview you," Kong said.

The costumed boy giggled again.

"So, uh, Spider-Man," Kong spoke up excitedly. "I'll just come right out and ask... Who are you?"

He stopped walking. Spider-Man turned towards them with crossed arms and seemed to think hard about it. Then he said, "Answer me first: Why do you want to know?"

"Why _wouldn't_ we want to know?" Kong replied. "Is there anyone in this city who isn't curious?"

"We've been interested ever since that day you appeared in our school," Debra elaborated. "It was one of the only times the legendary Spider-Man was seen during the day. It made us think you were one of our classmates... but we've pretty much eliminated every suspect by now."

"Is whether I'm a classmate or not really so important?"

"Sure it is!" Kong said. "It was exciting to think about. This new superhero that the entire city was talking about could have been somebody we knew!"

"If he was living a double life like that, then it means you didn't really know him."

Spider-Man's words sent them into silence. They couldn't deny what he said.

"Everyone is so interested in the face under the mask," he continued. "Is a face really so important?"

"I think I understand what you're saying," Debra said. "Everyone wants to know your secret identity, your name or your face. But you're saying that's not the real you. Your actions tell people more about you than your secret identity does. Is that what you mean?"

"Bingo!"

"You mean... we only get to know one?" Kong wondered. "Anyone can see the 'real you' but all your other facts have to be a secret...? Spider-Man, why do you wear that mask in the first place?"

He shrugged. "Who knows? Maybe I'm just trying to _prove_ that faces aren't important."

"I can understand that," Debra repeated, "but they're still interesting. Fans always want to know more about someone they admire, whether it's important or not. That's what makes them fans."

"So for the record, you're not gonna tell us anything about your identity after all, are you?" Kong asked.

"Heh heh heh... But it's so much fun to know something everyone else is clueless about. It's so much fun to be the only one 'in on it'."

"You're the only one who thinks that," Gwen, who had been silent up until now, said.

The statement grabbed everyone's attention, and she continued. "It's not fun. Keeping a secret... is not fun at all. Even when people surround you all the time, you can't tell them how you really feel. It makes you feel lonely." Gwen quickly glanced at Debra and Kong. "And guilty. Don't you feel that?"

"Course not," Spider-Man replied carelessly. "I've never felt guilty about anything. That's probably why I have so much fun watching other people's misery."

Gently, like a bubble rising through the water, a suspicion appeared in both Debra and Kong's minds. They suspected something that Gwen knew from the beginning.

"Tell me, I'm actually curious, what's it like to feel empathy? What's it like to _care_ about people? You know what, forget I asked that. If I don't know already then you probably can't explain it to me."

"Hold on a sec," Kong interrupted. "You are the _real_ Spider-Man... aren't you?"

He barked out a louder laugh than ever before. "What are you, stupid?! Of course I'm not!"

"Spider-Man" started pacing again, his footsteps pounding harder than before. His costume seemed to shimmer as he walked. Debra, Kong and Gwen huddled a little closer together.

"Man, the longer I stay here the more I realize how stupid you are! All it took was a costume and a few acrobatics to fool you? You're so clueless, but then again, that's what made messing with you so much fun."

Colors dripped down his costume like wet paint, but they never splattered onto the ground. Instead the colors slowly cascaded over his body and merged into new images. The end result was a dark red body like raw muscle without skin.

"W-Who are you?" Debra asked.

He turned to face them again. "I'm a bad guy... And, man, am I bored. I recently finished setting up my Grand Master Plan so I have nothing left to do but wait for the results to come in. I have to do _SOMETHING_ to amuse myself in the meantime."

Gwen narrowed her eyebrows. _He finished setting up his master plan?_

"POP QUIZ!" He suddenly shouted, making the others flinch. "Question one: Why did I bring you up to this rooftop to have our little chat? This high rooftop where no one can see you?"

The students could only stare at this transforming figure, their anxiety growing by the second.

"Question two: Why did I forbid you from calling anybody on your cell phones? And question three..." He slammed his hand onto the metal door leading to the stairwell. "Why have I been between you and your only exit all this time?"

His mask tore open, and misshapen, pointed teeth grew out of the curved line beneath his red crystal eyes. It was a three-dimensional mask that paralleled the true grin underneath. This was a monster in both mind and body.

Anxiety and shame overwhelmed Debra and Kong. This was a trap and they walked right into it, completely ignorant. The earlier conversation was nothing but a cat teasing its mice.

"What do you want with us?" Debra asked, trying to keep fear out of her voice.

"I already told you. I had some time to kill and I thought this would be fun. That's all there is."

"Y-Yeah, that little chat was fun, ha ha ha!" Kong said nervously. "Well, uh, now that it's over, I don't suppose there's any way you'd... let us go?"

The red monster held his chin in his claw, and then he said, "Okay, man. Why not?"

All three students blinked. "Wait... really?"

"Sure. You have permission to leave. You can go right now if you want... but you have to say _PLEASE_."

They looked at each other, took a breath, and in perfect unison said, "Please let us go."

"Get on your hands and knees and say please," he said with a smirk they could almost _hear_.

They hesitated a little longer than before. But then Kong silently got down and lowered his head. Debra watched him and decided to follow.

Gwen didn't want to, but she knew if she didn't, Carnage would use it as an excuse to keep all three of them. She couldn't put the others in danger. So she too got in a groveling position.

"Please let us go!"

Their captor chuckled. "My goodness, how obedient. Congratulations! Your humiliation has earned you your freedom. You can go." He stepped out of the way and gestured towards the roof's door.

The three students lifted their heads. They watched him carefully. This was obviously too good to be true, but their captor made no more movements. Slowly, cautiously, they got to their feet and stepped towards the exit.

Three steps later, Carnage jumped back in front of them. "Wait!" he said with suppressed laughter that wasn't really suppressed. "I changed my mind!"

He pointed behind them, to the short wall surrounding the rooftop. "If you still want to leave, you'll just have to take the other way." He brandished his claws and inched towards them. "Maybe I should give you some _HELP_... Aha ha ha!"

Gwen stepped forward, planted her feet firmly to stop her knees from shaking and yelled, "Carnage, knock it off already! This isn't going to solve anything and you know it!"

Her outburst stunned Debra and Kong.

It stunned Carnage too. "How do you know my name?"

Gwen didn't answer his question. "Carnage, please, stop this!" She spoke like a mother admonishing a child. "There isn't any reason for you to hurt people anymore."

"Of course there's no reason. That's the whole point, lady. I don't actually care if you idiots live or die - This is about _ME_. It's just for fun."

"But as long as you act like a supervillain, there will always be people who will try to stop you. What you're doing won't give you what you really need."

"Lady, what do _YOU_ know about what I really need? On second thought, don't answer that. I don't feel like talking anymore."

Fast as lightning, Carnage charged at Gwen. He grabbed her throat and pushed her to the edge of the rooftop. Gwen's back bent uncomfortably over the short wall. Debra and Kong were frozen - scared for Gwen - too scared to do anything that might provoke this monster.

Gwen stared into Carnage's mask. Her mouth was straight and her eyes firm.

"You're _BIZARRELY_ calm for someone whose life is hanging by a thread," Carnage muttered.

"You might laugh, but this isn't the first time a supervillain tried to make me fall to my death."

He snorted. "So, what? It's not scary the second time around?"

"I am scared," Gwen responded.

"Then show it! Scream, or whimper, or beg for mercy, or _SOMETHING_. C'mon, entertain me!"

"No," Gwen said firmly.

Carnage wasn't expecting this. He stopped grinning. "Why not?!"

"Because it's the only way I have of fighting back... You said it yourself. You don't care if I die. What you really want is to break my spirit. But I won't give you the satisfaction."

"I was only gonna scare you before," Carnage snarled. "But if you won't entertain me, maybe I should kill you after all..."

Gwen was silent. Her glare was steady.

And as Debra and Kong watched her, they stood up a little straighter.

Carnage stared into her face, as if his will alone could break her. But he slowly realized it wouldn't. The only one faltering was him.

"..._FINE!_" Carnage pulled Gwen back and shoved her away from the edge. "In that case, we'll try _THIS!_"

Carnage's arms stretched out like rubber bands. They grabbed the necks of Debra and Kong. He pulled them close and instantly put them both in the same position Gwen was just a second ago.

He looked over his shoulder and laughed at Gwen. "Let's see how brave you are now! Come on, Miss High and Mighty, which of these two nitwits gets to fall to their death?"

Debra and Kong both struggled under his grip, but they couldn't move his claws.

Gwen glared at Carnage silently.

"I'll only kill one of them, but _YOU_ have to choose which one. The geek or the fatso? Or maybe you'll be the 'heroic' type who says 'take me instead!' So what'll it be? You have thirty seconds to choose."

Gwen crossed her arms. "I won't choose."

This surprised Carnage yet again. He really thought she'd sacrifice herself. "You have to choose!"

"I won't choose. I want all of us to survive."

"That's not allowed! If you don't pick someone, I'll kill them both!"

"Then it would be your choice, not mine. I won't play your game no matter what you do."

Carnage quickly considered his options.

"Have it your way!" He looked back to his two victims. "You decide instead! Which one of you wants to be the 'good' person who sacrifices himself? And which one wants to be the 'evil' person who says nothing and waits to be saved?!"

"The one who should get thrown off this roof is _you_!" Kong yelled.

"What Gwen says is absolutely right!" Debra added. "We won't let our spirits be broken. Your deals can't be trusted anyway, so there's no point in cooperating with you!"

"I'll throw you over!"

"Then we'll die knowing you couldn't break us! It's the same as winning!"

It was a gutsy thing to say, and Debra had to admit it was a partial bluff, but she was confident Carnage wouldn't call it. Their deaths weren't enough to satisfy him.

Carnage shoved them over to where Gwen was.

Gwen made sure the two of them were all right. After seeing their nods, she looked back to Carnage. "It's just as I told you. You have all this power now, but power can't give you what you need."

He stared at her. Then he threw his head back and laughed again. "AHA HA HA HA HA! I don't need anything, lady! It's only a matter of time until my real target is gone! Then I'll come back and cut you up at my leisure!"

Debra looked towards the door. She saw it was cracked open just a bit. She nodded, glanced back at Carnage, and took a step towards the door. Carnage noticed, of course. He jumped in her way and laughed.

"I already told you. You'll have to take the _OTHER_ way. Ha ha ha!"

"Hey, laughing boy!"

"Eh?" That voice came from the door. Carnage turned around to look.

Flash Thompson ran up and swung a cinder block against Carnage's head.

_**SMASH!**_

_**CRACK!**_

Carnage held his head and wobbled away, just barely keeping his balance. "Son... of... a...!" He stepped over broken pieces of concrete.

Flash dropped the fragment of cinder block still in his hands and gestured towards the open door. "Go, go, go!"

The others didn't need to be told twice. Debra, Kong and Gwen ran through. Mary Jane was inside the stairwell, ready to greet them.

"Isn't a cinder block overkill?"

"He's got superpowers. He'll live," Flash dismissed without really caring. He slammed the door shut and ran down the stairs after them.

"How did you find us?" Gwen was bewildered.

"Debra sent me a text," Flash answered.

"She did?" Gwen looked at Debra. "When did you have the chance?"

Debra proudly took her cell phone out of her pocket. "I invented a special code for our Team. I only needed to type a few numbers inside my pocket, and that was all Flash needed to know most our situation."

Gwen realized it was when Carnage pushed her over the edge the first time. With Gwen as a distraction, it must have been easy for Debra to send a supplemental unnoticed.

"Wait a sec!" Kong stopped running and looked up the stairs behind him. "Why isn't he chasing us?"

"Gift horse! Mouth! Don't look!" Mary Jane pulled him along.

* * *

><p>The reason Carnage wasn't chasing them was because he was too busy.<p>

While he was still recovering from the blow, he felt someone grab him and throw him over to a neighboring rooftop. As soon as Carnage regained his bearings, he saw Spider-Man standing in front of him.

"Well, well, well. Spider-Face." He extended his claws. "Did you come here for a _FOURTH_ beat down?"

"We need to talk," was his reply.

_**To be continued...**_

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes<strong>: (7/12/2013) I was intending to split up this chapter and the next one, but I'm so glad I also split up this chapter and the previous one. Any two of them together would have been way too long. It's a big difference from the "Crazy Day in the City" arc, where most chapters were under 500 words.

This story seems to be getting increasingly less popular. It might be because the Carnage Arc doesn't have any of the humor the Crazy Day Arc did. But stuff like that is inevitable when dealing with a major villain like this. Cletus/Carnage is both an antithesis and a true kindred spirit. This is an important time for Peter/Spidey.

In case there was any confusion, Debra sent Flash two text messages. The first was as soon as they arrived at that rooftop, to tell Flash the address. The second was to inform him it wasn't the real Spidey, and they needed to be rescued.


	21. C8 All Cards

_**Carnage Part 8 - Lay All Your Cards on the Table**_

"I'm home. Sorry I'm late," Peter announced as he walked through the front door.

"Hello, Peter!" He heard his aunt's voice from another room, followed by footsteps. "Ben's not home yet, either. He got held up at work."

"I, uh, I brought some friends."

"Hi, Mrs. Parker," Gwen called from behind Peter.

"Hi, May!" Mary Jane called from behind her.

May Parker, Peter's aunt, entered the living room. The older woman wore a warm smile. "Nice to see you all again. It's rare for Peter to ever bring his friends over."

"Should I have called first?" Peter asked. "We can go if-"

"Don't be silly," May admonished. "Your friends are always welcome here. Oh... Who's this?"

She noticed the fourth person in the group, lingering in the entryway. His meekness made him look much smaller than he really was. The redhead's large eyes showed he was uncomfortable in the new environment.

"This is Cletus," Peter said. "He's... new."

"This _is_ a rare occasion. There's almost enough for a party," May said. "Is Harry coming too?"

"N-No... He's not."

"We're just gonna talk for a little while," Mary Jane said. She quickly left the room and ran up the stairs, totally at home in someone else's house.

"Would you like some drinks?" May offered. "There should still be some soda left."

"We're fine, Mrs. Parker, thank you." Gwen nodded and walked after Mary Jane. Peter casually followed.

Cletus was a little slower. He quietly closed the door behind him, and then he stepped past Peter's guardian. But he stopped and turned to look at the woman again. May never stopped smiling. She met his gaze and smiled even brighter.

Cletus was confused. "Did something good happen?"

She simply said, "You're here, aren't you?"

"Huh?"

May looked towards the staircase, where Peter was last seen. "You see, Peter hasn't had a friend since he was a little boy. He was always alone after that. But last year he met Gwen. And through Gwen, he made friends with Mary. Then Harry came along. And now he has you, too. I'm glad that he has so many people in his life now."

She smiled at Cletus again. "It's a wonderful feeling to have friends, especially after you've been alone for so long... You think so too, don't you, Cletus?"

"Yes..." Cletus nodded slightly. "Yes, it is..."

"Cletus?" Peter came back to the top of the staircase, looking for the other boy.

"I'm coming!" To May he said, "It was nice meeting you." And then he hurried towards Peter.

Once everyone assembled in his bedroom, Peter closed the door securely. "Remember not to talk loudly."

"I know," Mary Jane said.

It was normally a taboo to talk about Peter's other life with a relative - or _anyone_, really - nearby, but Peter didn't want to wait for a conveniently empty house this time. This was important.

Peter faced Cletus. "Spidey already told Gwen and Mary Jane the details, so now they'll relay it to us." They turned to the two girls. "So, what happened this afternoon?"

"Well..."

* * *

><p><em><strong>Some Hours Earlier.<strong>_

Carnage and Spidey, each in full costume, stood on the rooftop facing each other.

"Do you have any idea how big a pain in the butt you're being?" Spidey asked. "My friends are all pulling their hair out trying to find a way to deal with you."

"A pain? I just got whacked in the head with a cinderblock," Carnage deadpanned. "If you want pain, wait 'till I pay back those nitwits... Yeah, throwing them off a building is too good for them now."

Spidey shot back, "You had it coming. _You_ started it after all. Why did you bring them here, anyway? How does kidnapping and scaring people help your big plan?"

"This had nothing to do with my Grand Master Plan," he answered. "Man, you haven't been paying attention. I scared them 'cause I thought it'd be fun... But I never expected them to fight back. It wasn't fun after that."

"You think everyone in the world is just gonna roll over and let you kick them around? You think _Cletus_ is going to do that?"

Carnage flinched. Spidey continued. "Your so-called master plan is to get rid of Cletus' personality, so you can be alone in that body. Is that right?"

Carnage recovered and spoke honestly. "Yep."

"Are you trying to integrate your personalities together?" Spidey asked.

He snorted. "Don't be stupid, Spider-Face. I _JUST_ told you I'm trying to get rid of Cletus... I'm trying to _KILL_ Cletus... If we become one, that's not really getting rid of him, is it?"

"But that's the only 'cure' I've heard of for D.I.D.," Spidey replied. "If not that, _how_ are you going to do it? _How_ does your plan work?"

"What you're really asking is, 'how do I stop it?' Get real, Spider-Face. If you think I'm gonna tell you that, you're much worse than stupid."

Spidey didn't respond, so Carnage kept talking.

"But I _WILL_ tell you this much, if you like. My Grand Master Plan is already set up. It's like a boulder I pushed off a mountain. It'll take a while, but I don't have to do anything but wait 'till it hits the bottom... And then Cletus will be nothing but a smear on the ground. You probably couldn't stop it even if I _DID_ tell you how it worked."

"If it really does get rid of Cletus, I suppose you'll keep being a supervillain."

"Of course, man," Carnage said like it was the most natural thing ever. "It'd be like getting promoted to full-time. Without my container locking me up half the day, I could have my special kind of fun twenty-four seven...

"Spider-Face," he continued, "even if I don't tell you _EVERYTHING_, I do tell you a lot about myself whenever we meet. I think it should be your turn now. Why are _YOU_ here, right now?"

After some hesitation, Spidey answered, "I'm not sure myself... I want to stop you, like any other supervillain. But my friends want to save Cletus. None of us are sure of a good way to do both... But thanks to your trouble-making, we don't have the luxury of sitting around, waiting to think of a plan. I have to act _now_, even if I'm not sure what to do."

"In other words, you're just winging it," Carnage said with a laugh. "I've got another question. See, I can't see all of my container's memories, but sometimes the important ones slip through... It seems Cletus met someone who's 'like him'... And _YOU_ seem to know a lot about split personalities..." He trailed off.

_So Carnage did know, or at least suspect_, Spidey thought. _But that's fine. Even paranoid Peter knew we'd probably have to tell him eventually. It'd be easier if all of us were in on it._

"That's right," Spidey admitted. "I haven't actually met Cletus yet, but the other me, Peter Parker, has. He's the one who wants to save Cletus from you most of all."

"I see... It's just as I thought... Spider-Man and Peter Parker... Heh heh heh... Aha ha ha ha ha!" Carnage threw his head back and laughed from his gut.

"Care to let me in on the joke?"

Carnage soon calmed down. "No, it's nothing... I bet Peter _TOLD_ you to save Cletus, but maybe I have a better offer."

"What are you talking about?" Spidey asked.

"Don't tell me you haven't thought about it. I'm going to kill Cletus _VERY_ soon. If you stay out of my way, I'd be more than happy to do it again on Peter."

"...You're serious, aren't you?"

"Dead serious." Indeed, there was no laughter in his voice anymore. "Think about it. If 'Peter' were gone, you'd be a real person, not just Peter's other self. Alters like us, who never had anything of our own - no name, no history, no body, not even a full existence - we can steal _EVERYTHING_ from our other selves! That body would be yours to keep! Don't tell me that isn't tempting."

Carnage stepped towards Spidey. "I _THOUGHT_ you were my enemy, but it turns out we're the same. We're the only ones in the world who understand each other. So even if you can't admit it out loud, I _KNOW_ how desperately you want that body for yourself... Seriously, man, can you reject my offer?"

Carnage stared at Spidey, enormously enjoying his victory. Spidey stared back at him silently for a moment or two. The gel that formed his costume split at the neck, allowing Spidey to pull his mask up just far enough to expose his mouth.

Then he said, "In a New York minute, loser." And he stuck out his tongue.

Carnage reeled back like he was punched. He could have been struck by lightning, and it would have been less of a surprise.

Spidey pulled his mask back down. "I don't want to get rid of Peter. On the one hand, I admit there would be some perks. I'd have more time out each day, and I wouldn't have to put up with Peter's nagging. But I don't _need_ that. I'm plenty happy with my life the way it is now... And Peter may be a nerd and really bossy, but I don't hate him. I wouldn't want him to disappear just so I'd have more free time."

He pointed a finger at Carnage. "Oh, and one more thing. That nonsense about how we're the same just because we're alters - How stupid is that? I'm not even the same as Peter and I share a brain with him. Why would I be the same as a psycho like you? ...No, you don't know me at all."

Carnage listened to him carefully. Then he shrugged and shook his head. "I guess not. Man, today was certainly my day for surprises... Oh, well. If you won't help me, I guess I'll just have to kill Cletus anyway - and watch you agonize in your bitter failure to stop me."

"You talk big, but you don't realize how badly outnumbered you are," Spidey confidently shot back. "It's not just me and Peter. It's us, our friends, MJ and Stacy, and _Cletus_ too. We're all working together to stop you. Did your 'Master Plan' take all five of us into account?"

"Big deal, man. One spider and four even smaller bugs versus a weapon of mass destruction. I told you the first night we met: you don't stand a chance." Carnage brandished his claws. "But if you want a reminder, we can brawl it out right now."

Spidey shook his head. "I can't stop you today, but I _will_ stop you. I promise, the next time we meet, I'm gonna give you a total thrashing."

He walked to the edge of the rooftop. But before he jumped over, he looked back over his shoulder and said, "You picked the wrong superhero to mess with."

And then he was out of sight. Carnage ran after him and looked over the edge, but Spidey was already gone.

"Go ahead and run," Carnage shouted into the empty air. "That's all you're powers are good for! And remember what I said: _NOT! A! CHANCE!_"

* * *

><p>"Spidey couldn't really get any useful information out of Carnage," Mary Jane explained.<p>

Peter frowned. He wasn't expecting much, but it was still depressing to hear.

Eager for good news, Mary Jane added, "But - But at least he hasn't erased Cletus yet. We still have time."

Cletus was very quiet throughout the entire meeting.

"Spidey was talk-"

Peter was interrupted by his cell phone ringing. He took it out of his pocket and looked at the caller ID. It read "Harry."

Peter grimaced and hung up. "I was saying, Spidey was talking big but in a one-on-one fight, I really don't think he can beat Carnage. We can't get Protoform X away from him by force."

Gwen looked around the group, stopping on Cletus with an expression of guilt. Then she sighed and said, "Well, someone's got to play devil's advocate and it might as well be me. I'm sorry but this is something we really should think about."

"Think about what?" Mary Jane asked.

"Maybe... we should turn Cletus over to the police."

Cletus lowered his head.

"Are you joking?!" Mary Jane demanded.

"I don't like it either. But Carnage hides that suit every time he switches with Cletus, so that's when he's powerless."

"We can't lock Cletus up in a mental hospital or prison just to stop Carnage," Mary Jane shot back. "We're trying to _save_ Cletus, remember?"

Gwen retorted, "Well, what if we _don't_ lock Carnage up and he erases Cletus' personality anyway? It might be better to just cut our losses..."

"I think Gwen is right," Cletus spoke up suddenly.

"WHAT?!" Mary Jane whipped her head around to look at him.

"The most important thing is to stop Carnage. As long as we do that, I don't care about the consequences."

"Cletus," the other redhead whispered.

"Even before Carnage got superpowers, he used me to do a lot of horrible things... Unforgivable things... No matter what punishment I get, even if I'm tied to the stake and set on fire, I wouldn't complain."

He actually had a resigned, almost peaceful expression as he said that. It made the others very uncomfortable.

"_**I**_ would complain," Peter said. His stern tone took the others by surprise. "I wouldn't want to be labeled a monster and locked up. So I'm not going to let it happen to a friend either. I promised myself I would save you, and I meant it."

"But what else can we do?" Cletus asked.

"We can't give up," Mary Jane said. "There has _got_ to be a way to have our cake and eat it too. There's just _got_ to be."

Gwen sighed again and said, "If only we didn't _need_ to stop Carnage - If he gave up this supervillain idea on his own, it'd solve all our problems at once."

"Yeah, that'd sure be nice," Mary Jane mumbled. Then her eyes widened. It was just like that moment in cartoons when a light bulb shines above a character's head.

"Hey!" She looked around at the group with an excited smile. "Why not!"

"Why not... what?" Gwen asked.

"We'll just ask Carnage to stop being evil," Mary Jane said. "He tried to make Spidey switch sides. Why don't we do the opposite?"

"After everything he's done, there's no way he'll just conveniently agree to stop his plan." Curious, Gwen looked at Cletus. "Will he?"

Cletus shook his head. "He never listened when I asked him to stop."

Peter spoke up again. "And yet, Mary Jane's idea makes sense... We don't know when, where, or how Carnage is going to try this 'erasing' procedure, whatever it is. He has all the power now. So talking him out of it might be the only way... Next time he appears, instead of trying to get information out of him, we should make one real attempt at a peaceful settlement."

"But there's one more problem," Gwen said. "Spidey officially hates Carnage. He probably won't agree to talk peacefully."

"Oh, that's right," Mary Jane realized. "Even if he did agree, his heart wouldn't be in it. If Spidey can't convince Carnage to reform, which of us-"

"It has to be me," Peter said. "No, it _should_ have been me, right from the start. _I'm_ the one who understands Carnage, not Spidey."

That surprised the group. "Don't say that," Gwen admonished. "You're nothing like Carnage."

"No, it's true," he said quietly. "Don't you remember? When I first learned Spidey was living inside me, I hated it. I wanted to be normal again so badly. There was a time I would have given absolutely anything to be free of him... I still feel that way sometimes, deep down...

"But I _chose_ coexistence. It took a while, but I was able to let go of my hatred. So I'm the only one who even has a chance of making Carnage do the same."

Peter seemed confident, but Mary Jane was worried inside.

_While Peter's trying to reform Carnage, Carnage will definitely be trying to tempt Peter, just like Spidey_, she thought. _I want to trust Peter, but... Is everything going to turn out okay?_

* * *

><p>Late that night... After Peter and his friends decided their course of action, Carnage still had things of his own to take care of.<p>

With nobody watching him, Carnage spoke into a cell phone. "My list of enemies just keeps growing longer. I never would have guessed so many people had the guts to stand up to me." He ran his fingers through his curly hair. "Ugh, man, Norman's getting real antsy too. I'm running out of hiding places for my stuff. I'll probably have to burn this phone as soon as I hang up."

"Carnage, it's called a burn phone, but you know you don't have to actually set it on fire, right?"

"Don't have to? Why wouldn't I want to?" Carnage asked.

"Never mind."

"So, yeah, I won't be able to talk to you for a while," he said. "Things are about to get _VERY_ messy. I'll contact you again once Cletus Kasady is finally out of my life."

"Norman Osborn won't let it happen."

"He can't stop me," Carnage rebutted. "He can only help me. He'll have no choice."

"Okay, but even if he does, even if everything goes exactly the way you hope, it'll still take a miracle for your so-called master plan to work."

Carnage laughed. "Oh, ye of little faith! You're too pessimistic. You should think how wonderful it'll be if this turns out to be the one-in-a-million chance... And it _WILL_ be. I will _MAKE_ it happen."

"We'll see..."

"Just wait, my friend. Everything is about to hit the fan!" And then he hung up.

(_Posted 8/18/2013. Please review!_)


	22. MC1 Beginning

"People will do anything, no matter how absurd, in order to avoid facing their own souls." -Carl Jung

_**MAXIMUM CARNAGE! Part 1 - The Beginning of the End of the World**_

Summer vacation would start in only two weeks.

It was currently lunch period. Because of the increasingly nice weather, half the students were eating outside the school. Peter and Gwen weren't eating anywhere. They walked through the hallways side by side, in the midst of people who already finished lunch.

"I asked around, and I heard Cletus didn't attend any of his classes today," Gwen explained, keeping her voice down.

Cletus was supposed to check in with them between each period, but they haven't seen him all day.

"Then he really is... him today," Peter muttered.

"He probably won't show up at all today," Gwen said. "He's causing trouble outside, somewhere."

"Not necessarily. He might still come. He likes watching people in school... Picking targets."

A buzzing started in Peter's head. He stopped in his tracks, and Gwen stopped after him. Speak of the devil...

"He's here," Peter said. Gwen followed his gaze.

At the very end of the hallway, a certain redhead stepped around the corner and into view. He gave the two of them a nasty smile.

"It's definitely him right now," Peter confirmed with his enhanced senses. "He skipped morning classes to get that suit." He looked at Gwen. "Wait for me outside."

"You sure you'll be okay?" she asked.

"This should be a one-on-one conversation."

Gwen still looked concerned. Peter was just as concerned, but he tried not to show it. "Everything will be okay... I promise." And then he kissed her on her forehead.

He quickly walked down the hall to meet his opponent. Carnage was smirking at him like the troll he was.

"So that girl from yesterday was _YOUR _girl," Carnage mused. "The world keeps getting smaller. Seems like _EVERYONE_ I know knows you."

Before Peter could respond, his cell phone rang. He pulled it out of his pocket and looked at the caller ID. It read "Harry."

Peter hung up and shoved the cell back in his pocket. "I want to talk to you."

Carnage snorted. "Talk, talk, talk. All anybody does around here is talk. Doesn't it get boring? Well, I don't mind. I have some time to kill before-"

He was interrupted. Once again, Peter's phone was ringing. Even though he could see it coming, Peter checked it anyway. It was still Harry.

"It's tough being popular," Carnage said with a smirk.

Peter ended the call. And before Harry tried to call again, Peter turned his cell phone off. "There, we won't be interrupted now."

"How nice... So where should we have our chat?"

* * *

><p>Outside in the courtyard, Mary Jane was patiently waiting for Peter and Gwen when her phone suddenly rung. The number wasn't from her contacts - she didn't recognize it - but answered anyway. "Hello?"<p>

"Where's Peter?" a voice shouted at her.

"Harry?" Mary Jane was confused. She and Harry didn't really know each other except through Peter. "How did you get my number?"

"That doesn't matter right now," he snapped back.

"It sorta does-"

"I can't get through to Peter, and Gwen has me blocked all the time anyway, so you're the only one left. Where is he?"

Mary Jane hesitated. Normally, she wouldn't reveal important information, but Harry's urgent tone got her worried.

"Is he talking with Carnage - no, Carnage _or_ Cletus - right now? Is he?"

Finally, she answered, "Probably, yes."

"Stop him!"

"Why?"

"I don't have time to explain. I'm not even sure if I'm right. But if I _am_ right, Peter and Carnage can't be left alone together! Trust me, it'll trigger the _worst-case scenario!_"

Mary Jane ran towards the school building.

* * *

><p>Peter and Carnage found an empty classroom to use. Peter shut the door behind him and faced his antithesis.<p>

Carnage wasn't in his costume. It was just Cletus' clothes and Cletus' face... It was surreal for Peter to watch. He saw the eyes, hair, nose, lips, ears, skin, and limbs and recognized them all from Cletus' body. But the way he smiled was not like Cletus. The way his stare burned holes into you, his rocky pacing, the way he propped himself up on a desk, and even when he was perfectly still... it was nothing like Cletus. It was like watching an actor you knew personally perform a scene on TV, but Peter knew in his gut it wasn't an act.

_I wonder if this is what it feels like for Gwen_.

"Well..." Carnage drawled out. "Here we are..."

"Carnage, _please_ stop using that suit to hurt people," Peter asked firmly but empathically.

"Spider-Face and your special lady asked me that yesterday, but I noticed none of you have given me a good reason yet."

"Protecting people is the only reason," he replied. "You're only concerned with making yourself happy. But I'm thinking of a way to make _everyone _involved happy. The only thing my friends and I want is to settle this conflict without anybody getting hurt... The best-case scenario is you making peace with Cletus."

"What a wonderful plan! Everybody becomes friends! We all get along and live our lives together with sunshine and rainbows happily ever after! Yay, yay, yay!" Carnage snorted. "Are you retarded? There's no way an evil villain would agree to that just because you brought it up."

"Is living with Cletus really that unbearable for you?"

"I'm going to kill Cletus," he said simply. "I'm going to be whole. _That's_ what I want."

"You're making a mistake. Being alone isn't the only way to be an individual. Spidey and I are the proof of that."

"After talking with Spider-Face, I realized it _WAS_ stupid to think we were the same. You don't like what I like. What works for you isn't gonna work for me. So stop preaching, man."

But Peter wouldn't give up just yet. "I won't stop until I'm finished. I told you, Spidey and I are the proof that coexistence is possible between alters. It's not always easy, but we've found comfort in this way of life. Each of us 'exists' as a 'person,' and that's enough for us."

"Our situations are totally different. _I_ know how to kill an alter, _YOU_ don't. You're going on and on about how wonderful it is to live together in harmony, but who are you kidding? It was your _ONLY_ choice - at least until now," he added with an even more sinister grin. "Spider-Face rejected my offer, but if you join me-"

"It wasn't my only choice..." Peter quietly interrupted, lowering his eyes.

"Huh? What was that?" Carnage asked with a mocking smile.

Peter repeated, louder, "It wasn't my only choice. It wasn't even my first choice... I had any number of options. I could have tried harder to keep him trapped in my bedroom whenever he came out. I could have told Gwen, or my family, and asked for their help. I could have blackmailed Spidey into submission. I could have committed myself to a hospital, use medication or therapy to stop him from coming out... I could still do most of those options. But I _chose_ to treat him like an equal and let him have some freedom."

He stared Carnage in the eye. "It was the best option, but it's not perfect. Spidey causes me a lot of problems and I'm scared of losing my sense of self. I had to sacrifice a lot of things for his sake, but that's what I _chose_, and I'm content with it."

Carnage stared back at Peter for a long second. Then he burst out laughing. He bent over, clutching his sides, almost lost balance and needed to support himself on a desk. Loud, hysterical, and totally uncontrolled laughing.

"Wow! How magnanimous!" Carnage looked up at the brunette. Tears were actually coming out of his eyes he was laughing so hard. "You're so noble! So righteous! I should elect you for sainthood! _AHA HA HA HA HA!_ You'd help anyone in trouble, wouldn't you?"

He wiped the tears away. "Let me guess: if you got the evil me instead of the superhero Spidey, you'd still be just as nice, huh? You'd still sacrifice half your life for me 'cause you're just _SO_ compassionate! _GYA HA HA!_"

"No, I wouldn't," Peter said bluntly. "You're not worth it."

Those four words sobered Carnage up completely. He instantly became silent. He stood up straight and calm and looked at Peter with raised eyebrows. "Oh... Is that so?"

"I came here to speak with you because I thought I could reform you," Peter spoke calmly and coolly. "Cletus is a good person, so I _thought_ you might be a good person too, deep down. I _thought_ you had a shred of decency. I _thought_ you could be redeemed... I made a mistake."

"Man, did I have you pegged wrong," Carnage muttered. "I thought 'good people' would forgive anyone. I guess you're not so good after all."

"I never claimed to be a saint who did good deeds naturally. I'm only making a conscious effort to do the right thing... Because of that, I was willing to put aside my own feelings to help Cletus, but I don't think I could ever really forgive you."

"Why not?" Carnage asked. "What makes me so different? How come you accept Spider-Face and Cletus but still reject _ME_?"

"It's simple." Peter looked him in the eye and answered, "Because I love Gwen more than anything in the world and _you almost killed her_."

"I had to!" Carnage shouted back. "Hurting others, being a supervillain, it's the only way to assert my 'existence'! To prove that I'm not Cletus!"

"The only way?"

He buried his face in his hands. His body stared to tremble. It seemed like he was sobbing. "What was I supposed to do? What other choice did I have? I _NEEDED_ some way to show the world that I was different from Cletus. I only did those horrible, evil things because... because..."

"'Because you thought it would be fun,' right?" Peter repeated. "'For no good reason at all,' right?"

Carnage stopped trembling. He lowered his hands and stared at Peter. He was surly like a kid caught in a lie.

"You've been saying that all along, but now that karma's catching up to you, you try to get sympathy? Sorry, but my friends and I aren't that gullible. Your split personality isn't the cause of your actions - just a cover."

Carnage shrugged with exaggeration. "Okay, man. You've proven I can't be reformed... Now what? You still don't know my Grand Master Plan, so you can't save Cletus. And you're still not strong enough to beat me in a fight. The way I see it, you're screwed."

"We still have options. We can put a watch on Cletus. He'll never be left alone. And whenever you come out, my friends will confine you somewhere so you can't cause trouble. You're just a normal person without your suit after all."

"What if I start wearing the suit full time?" Carnage asked.

"Then you'd still be wearing it when you switch with Cletus," Peter answered. "He gives it to us, and the problem reverts to the previous scenario."

"Okay..." The plan actually had some merit - some. "But you never know when I'll come out. Can you really watch my container twenty-four seven?"

"If Gwen, Mary Jane and I can't, then we'll ask Harry to help," he confidently replied. "If things get desperate, we might ask Debra and her friends to help too. And if the plan still fails, we'll think of something else. We'll do _whatever_ it takes to stop you."

Carnage lowered his face and spoke quietly. His clenched fists dug fingernails into his palms. "First Harry, then Norman... Spider-Face, those girls and the fatso from yesterday, and now you... People are always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always, always getting in my way."

"Whose fault is that?" Peter shot back. "You attack us for your own sick pleasure. _Of course_ we'd try to stop you. You're like a little kid who thinks it's okay to break the rules just because he wants it!"

Carnage flinched. Peter sounded just like Harry did that day.

"Hurting people is what I want. It's who I am! Is it wrong to be myself?!"

"It's absolutely wrong to hurt others, no matter what excuse you use! Even if you were born with an impulse for violence, you _chose_ not to fight that impulse. You _chose_ to value yourself more than others. Everything that happened after that is your own fault!"

"Screw you!" Carnage's rage was reaching its peak. "Go to hell! I'm sick of listening to you! I'm going to kill Cletus no matter what!"

"To prove your existence, right? Being the only personality in a body doesn't prove anything. My mind exists and it's separate from Spidey's because I believe it. 'I think, therefore I am'."

"Those are just words!" he spat.

"But I believe them," Peter calmly asserted. "Messing with someone else won't change you. You have to change yourself. It's your own insecurity you need to get rid of, not Cletus. But you're just too weak to let it go. So you hurt Cletus instead."

"Weak...? Me...?" Carnage tried to giggle, but it didn't really work. He was too angry. "You'll see... The whole world will see... Once Cletus is gone..."

"Then you'll still be weak!" Peter told him. "Even if Cletus is gone, you'll still be the same: petty and unconfident. You'll _never_ be whole. You'll always have a big scar on your heart, because you felt inferior to Cletus!"

At that point Carnage lost the ability to make words. His anger took the form of a loud, senseless growl.

Peter raised his voice to still be heard. "I won't let myself devolve into someone like you. You're a shallow, one-dimensional person, and it's not Cletus' fault. It's not even the fault of being born second. It's all _your own fault!_"

"SHUT UP! _**SHUT UP!**_"

Carnage covered his ears and screamed. "I AM... _**WHOLE!**_"

Red and black coils shot out and wrapped around his body. It was a physical explosion of anger that created a literal shockwave, knocking over desks and pushing Peter back a few feet. More tendrils shot out from Carnage's costume and stabbed the walls.

Peter stared in shock. He didn't expect Carnage to use the power suit inside a public school. He realized he made a horrible miscalculation.

"_**AAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!**_"

Carnage's transformation wasn't like normal. Even after the blood-colored gel covered his body, it continued to spread out from his feet and back. Tentacles covered the floor and walls like mutated ivy. The industrial schoolroom was quickly turning into a bloody thorn bush.

_What is this?_ Peter thought. _Is this... Carnage's version of Rage Mode?!_

The fully costumed Carnage grabbed Peter's neck and lifted him into the air.

"I'm sick of everything," he hissed into Peter's face. "I'm sick of being treated like a sub-human... I'm sick of waiting for Norman to finish our deal... and I'm totally sick of _YOU_... If you see Norman, tell him that his time is up!"

And then Carnage threw Peter out the window. The boy crashed through the wood and glass and fell outside the building.

"What is all that screaming?" said someone's scared voice from outside the room.

Carnage turned around and burst through the door - literally. He tore through the wooden door like it was made of tissue. His tentacles stretched and trailed behind him like a marionette's strings. He left footprints like red acid that bubbled and covered the floor.

He looked like something from a horror movie, an alien experiment, and Dante's Inferno, all rolled into one.

The people in the hallway screamed and ran. Carnage raised his arms and shot two tendrils from his palms. They each stabbed a person in the stomach. The two students groaned and collapsed to their knees. They moaned as their skin turned pale.

"Oh, stop whining, you wussies," Carnage sneered. "I'm not gonna kill you. I'll only suck you a _LITTLE BIT_ dry."

His tendrils released the students and they fell unconscious. More strings shot out of Carnage's body and connected him to the walls, spreading more of his dark red gel everywhere.

"I'll need as many transfusions as I can get... _ANY VOLUNTEERS?_"

* * *

><p>It happened so fast Peter almost didn't realize what happened. Carnage threw him, then he crashed through a closed window, and then he was tumbling through the air. The classroom was on the second floor. Which meant Peter crash-landed and rolled across the ground a little after a two-story fall.<p>

The grass was soft - and he had superpowers - but it still hurt. He took a minute to reorient himself.

Other students saw him and ran over to help, but Peter pushed them away and got to his feet on his own. He looked back up at the window he came from. It was the only window with broken glass, but the red vines quickly grew in its place, blocking it from entry.

"Peter!" Gwen pushed through the crowd and ran to Peter's side, but the brunette was still looking up at the building in horror.

"I messed up," he said, partly to Gwen, partly to himself. "I shouldn't have provoked him. I made everything worse..." He ran out of the crowd. "I have to get back inside!"

Peter ran around the building's corner and towards the front entrance. But before he could get there a crashing sound interrupted him.

The windows around the first one shattered, then the ones around those, and so on. It spread like a ripple until those red vines blocked every opening in the building. In just a few seconds, the school looked like an abandoned building overrun by blood-colored ivy.

Peter pulled and banged on the front doors, but they wouldn't budge. Carnage's tendrils were keeping it closed from the inside. Not even Peter's super strength could break it open.

"No, no, no!"

Carnage turned the school into his stronghold, and he had half the students and staff trapped inside with him.

Peter turned around. He saw a lot of people staring at the building in confusion or fear. He saw Gwen staring in worry. But there was someone he didn't see.

He moved to Gwen. "Where's Mary Jane? I thought you were waiting with her?"

"She... She ran back inside... And then this happened..."

Peter's horror reached a new low.

* * *

><p>Inside the school, nothing looked industrial or civilized anymore. The red goop was everywhere. It was a war zone.<p>

Unconscious people were scattered all over the place. Some were slumped on the ground, some pinned to the walls, all stabbed with tendrils and being slowly drained.

And in the center of it all was Carnage. The tentacles on his back connected him to the whole network. He was basking in his creation.

"Now... the rampage begins!"

_**To be continued...**_

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes<strong>: (8/31/2013) A big chapter and the start of a new arc. I'm sorry if I disillusioned anybody with Peter - who is usually a kind person - telling Carnage how much he sucked. I mean, Carnage totally deserved it, but still.

Special Shout-Out to LandofMidnightRain for reviewing. I've honestly been down in the dumps lately. This story has gotten barely any new reviewers in several months, and it stings more when I compare it to other, more recent stories. But then I saw what Land wrote. And it reminded me that I have some actual fans who really seem to enjoy what I write. Their words - cliché as it sounds - warmed my heart, and made me feel silly for wanting quantity readers when I already have quality. I'll try not to forget you guys again.

**Disclaimer**: Peter's talk with Carnage was inspired by a lot of other stuff. The context is totally different, but it was largely influenced by Anri's talk with Haruna Niekawa in the anime "Durarara!" (_"No, I wouldn't," Peter said bluntly. "You're not worth it."_) It also had elements of the battle with Insomnia in the manga "DNAngel" (_"I'M A REAL THING!"_) and Captain Picard telling off Armus in "Star Trek: The Next Generation." I don't own any of them, of course.

Details came later, but I had the idea that Carnage might take over the school for a long time. I _FEEL_ like it was before "Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions" came out, but that was such a long time ago, and Carnage took over S.H.I.E.L.D. in such a similar way, I'm not sure anymore... Either way, I don't own that game.


	23. MC2 Devil's Deal

_**MAXIMUM CARNAGE! Part 2 - The Devil's Deal With Another Devil**_

An unknown force had taken over Midtown High School. The reporters, police, and SWAT teams arrived quickly but were unable to break through the red cords that sealed every exit. Nobody could get in or out of the building, and an unspecified number of people were trapped inside. Calls to their cell phones received no reply.

All this was reported on the news. Norman Osborn was watching it on the computer in his office.

"This is terrible," Norman said in a monotone voice. The security man Hector Jones stood patiently behind him.

The field reporter used a great many words to express that they really had no info to work with. Norman shut the screen off. He already knew more than anybody. He knew everything.

"Call those what's-their-names scientists - Spider-Man's friends," Norman instructed.

* * *

><p>Norman Osborn walked through the hallway. Backyard and Quarter kept pace with their boss, just a foot behind him.<p>

"'The mind is the ultimate black box no one can look into.'"

"Sir?"

"That's something Carnage told me the first time we met," he answered. "Neurologists can study the physical _brain_, but the _mind_ is just barely out of our reach."

"By 'first time,' you mean you met Carnage before the break-in?" Quarter asked.

The trio entered a lab - the same lab Carnage broke into not too long ago. They arrived at the door to the vault where Protoform X used to be stored.

Norman turned to his employees. "You asked me before how it was possible to fix the failed Protoform X, remember?"

Backyard and Quarter both nodded.

"The answer is simple: It's because Carnage helped me complete it."

That was one of the last answers they would have expected, and it showed on their faces.

Norman opened the vault. The glass case was still broken. No one had even bothered to clean the mess on the floor.

"But isn't Carnage just a teenager?" Quarter asked. "He couldn't possibly know how to do such advanced technical work."

"He didn't need to."

Norman began to explain. "I first met Carnage many weeks ago. Out of the blue, a young boy walked into Oscorp's lobby and audaciously demanded to see the boss. This was back when he lived in New Jersey - He made the trip by himself just to see me. I was curious, so I invited him up to my office. It seems he heard rumors about the incomplete Protoform X being worked on in Oscorp. Since you made a similar one, you must know how the bio-suits work... The B.C.I."

From their physical appearance, the bio-suits were just goo. They didn't have buttons or switches or touch-screens, so how did they work? How did Spidey make his suit invisible when not in use, and how did Carnage stretch his arms into spikes? The answer was B.C.I. - Brain-Computer Interface. While a person was wearing a bio-suit, it connected to their nervous systems and responded directly to their thoughts. Spidey and Carnage's minds controlled their costumes just like any other body part.

"Carnage told me about who he was, his multiple personalities, and his obsessive desire to erase Cletus Kasady. He thought a B.C.I. - a machine that connected to a person's brain - was his best chance of doing this.

"He made a proposal. I would use all of my scientific wizardry to create a weapon that can destroy his other personality. And in exchange... Carnage would give me _himself_, as a human lab rat!"

Backyard and Quarter flinched, but Norman didn't look at all uncomfortable.

"The government forced Oscorp to stop its human experimentations. But even before then, it was nearly impossible to get test subjects to cooperate. After all, who would be crazy enough to _not_ resist such dangerous, unpredictable tests? But Carnage was different! He did more than cooperate - he _wanted_ to be experimented on! He didn't care about the risks! That was how desperately he wanted to destroy Cletus. And even if he had a bad reaction, it'd still be okay with him because he'd be sharing the pain with Cletus.

"So, keeping my identity hidden, I pulled some strings and got his mom a nice job offer here in New York. She never knew what was really going on, of course. Once they finished moving, Carnage was coming here several days a week for his secret part-time job as a human guinea pig."

"Uh, sir..." Backyard spoke up. "What _kind_ of tests were these, exactly...?"

Norman looked him directly in the eye and answered, "Open-brain surgery... obviously."

He continued, apparently oblivious to his employees' reactions. "The brain functions by sending electrical signals over synapses. Motor skills, the five senses, and even emotions each correspond to a signal in a specific part of the brain. If we observe this process close-up, it is theoretically possible to learn how the brain forms certain _thoughts_. Carnage hoped that we could see where 'he' ended and 'Cletus' began, and then deactivate Cletus' parts of the brain."

"Exploratory surgery on a minor's brain?!" Quarter cried. "That's totally illegal! You said so yourself!"

"But how could I resist an opportunity like this? This was a chance to look deeper into the black box than anyone has ever seen before!" He grinned. "Neurology... Psychology... Genetic determinism... Anthroposophy... Even spirituality and A.I. engineering...! Thanks to what we learned from Carnage, research in all these fields jumped forward by _lightyears!_ We're on our way to creating a brand new brain from _nothing!_"

Norman stopped smiling. "And using what we learned, we completed the B.C.I. and Protoform X... That's when Carnage set up the hostage situation downtown. I revoked his access to the lab the instant I found out. But he just broke in and stole the suit. Well, 'steal' isn't the right word - It was made for him, after all."

He turned to his assistants. "I made a horrible miscalculation. I underestimated how much Carnage enjoys being a 'supervillain.' With or without the suit, I wouldn't want him to use his body full-time. But I don't have the luxury of shirking my end of the bargain. Not now that he's taken hostages again."

Hector Jones entered the vault. He wordlessly handed a tiny device to Quarter. One side had a L.C.D. screen and a single button. The other side had short metal prongs; the gadget would stick into skin if pressed hard enough.

"Is this the 'weapon' that'll erase Cletus?" Quarter asked, examining the device in her palm.

"Protoform X is the real weapon. This is just the trigger," Norman answered. "Carnage called it a 'brain pedometer.' I gave it to him so it could measure his brainwaves when he was out of the labs, for a little extra data. And he left it back here when he stole Protoform X. I've modified it to become the catalyst... Sort of like a software upgrade pack.

"All you have to do is attach that to the base of the subject's skull, over the bio-suit, and press the button. Then the suit will intensify the connection to the subject's brain. It'll target neurons that control memories, emotions, everything that makes up a 'personality.' Protoform X will imprint itself onto those parts of the brain... and shut them down, leaving everything else untouched. The deletion of one, and only one alter, exactly as Carnage requested."

"Is that really possible?" Backyard asked.

Norman chuckled. "We're Oscorp. We make the impossible possible all the time... That being said, while connecting a human's soul to a computer is common in science fiction, there's no precedent for it in reality. It _should_ work, but we can't be certain until we see the final result... Yes, it'll be a very interesting experiment."

He held up a hand. "One more thing... And this is something I already explained to Carnage, back when it was still in development, but... This method can only delete the personality that's connected to Protoform X. Meaning the personality that's 'awake.' If he wants to destroy Cletus, it can only be done when _Cletus_ is awake and controlling the suit."

"So then," Backyard said, "If we use the device when Carnage is awake, it'll destroy _him_ instead and solve all our problems, won't it?"

"Indeed!" Norman nodded enthusiastically. "Erase Carnage but leave Cletus unharmed. That would be the perfect solution! However... Carnage knows this better than anyone. He definitely won't make it easy for you."

Norman turned away from the others. "Give that device to Spider-Man and tell him everything I've told you... He'll know what to do."

Backyard and Quarter ran out of the room, leaving only Norman and Hector.

"A _very_ interesting experiment..."

_**To be continued...**_

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes<strong>: (9/25/2013) This should have been up much sooner. Sorry 'bout that. Anyway, we see the return of Kougami!Osborn. And if anyone's still interested, the name of his assistant, Hector Jones, comes from the TV series "Spider-Man: Unlimited." He was strongly implied to be the secret identity of Counter-Earth's Green Goblin.

**Disclaimer**: I still do not own "Kamen Rider OOO" or "Spider-Man: Unlimited."


	24. MC3 Break-In

_**MAXIMUM CARNAGE! Part 3 - A Big Reveal and a Break-In**_

The situation at the school was unchanged. The red vines covered every window and doorway. Nobody inside had yet to come out.

The police set up a command post outside the building, but it was a standoff. This was a hostage situation with an unknown enemy. All they knew was what came from a single text message, sent from a student's phone inside the building.

_**Subject: _**_

_**IM CARNAGE**_

_**I TOOK THIS PHONE 2 TELL U DO NOT ENTER**_

_**ONLY SPIDERMAN ENTERS**_

_**IF ANY1 ELSE COMES IN THESE PPL R DEAD  
><strong>_

Behind the police, behind the yellow tape closing off the scene, students and teachers watched the spectacle in fear and confusion. Gwen separated herself from the crowd and returned to Peter's side.

Peter was standing off by himself, staring intently at the damaged building. He wasn't watching in fear or confusion, but frustration.

Gwen quietly said, "I told dad that Mary was one of the students still inside, but nothing else." Gwen's dad was one of the policemen at the scene. "He wouldn't expect me to know anything, anyway."

"This is all my fault," Peter said, still staring ahead.

"Stop that," she replied sternly. "It's _Carnage's_ fault."

"I shouldn't have provoked him."

"Well, kicking yourself won't fix it. So let's try to think productively."

Peter looked past her. Gwen turned around and followed his gaze. Far down the street, past the police car barricade, a car parked and two people stepped out: Backyard and Quarter. They gestured to the boy.

"You know them?" Gwen asked.

"They're the guys at Oscorp that Spidey knows. I'll try to switch with Spidey and send him over. If we're lucky, maybe they'll have some answers..."

* * *

><p>While PeterSpidey were trying to get answers, another group was doing their own investigating.

"We'll give this list to the police as soon as we're done," Debra said. She, Flash and Kong were fortunate enough to have been outside the building when the crisis started. Since then, they were working on a precise list of names of the people still trapped. "The problem is, just because someone hasn't been seen yet, we can't be absolutely sure they're still inside."

"Yeah, no telling who's just playing hooky," Flash mumbled as he re-checked the roster on his laptop. "I noticed Harry wasn't in his morning classes. But he's not answering his cell either..."

"Maybe we should tell the police about the tunnel too? It doesn't seem like they know."

"Hey, Debbie, check this out." Kong was watching the school through binoculars. He handed them to Debra and pointed. "Take a close look at that red gunk clogging up the windows."

Debra put the binoculars over her glasses. "I've seen that before... It's the same as the tentacles from that person who attacked us on the rooftop. Gwen called him Carnage."

"Gwen called him?" Flash repeated.

"Wasn't Carnage that guy with the bomb who caused all the trouble downtown?" Kong asked. "The news didn't mention anything like this back then. What made Gwen think they were the same person?"

The three investigators looked at each other.

Flash closed the laptop. "We should go ask her."

* * *

><p>Spidey examined the gadget in his hand.<p>

"So let me get this straight," he asked Backyard and Quarter, "you just attach this gizmo to a bio-suit and it gets rid of one side of a split personality?"

"That's right," Backyard answered. "We found out that Carnage is actually a student named Cletus Kasady-"

"Yeah, I already know that."

He blinked. "Oh... But, you see, they're not exactly the same person. He has a condition called dissociative-"

"Know that too."

Quarter spoke up. "It turns out Norman Osborn knew Carnage from the beginning and-"

"Figured _that_ too."

They stared at him.

"What _else_ do you know?!"

"Carnage has secretly bought most of Oscorp's stock and his master plan is to use its weapons to start an international war," Spidey deadpanned.

"Really?!"

"Nah, I'm just messin'."

They weren't amused.

Spidey looked over his shoulder, back to the disaster area that used to be a school. "Although, that little prick probably would start a war if he could."

He looked back to the device. "A way to stop only Carnage while saving Cletus... This is _exactly_ what we've been hoping for."

"It's a double-edged sword, Spider-Man," Quarter told him. "This process can only erase the personality that's awake at the time. If you try to use it on Carnage, he might switch with Cletus at the last second... And it can only be used once."

"And this is assuming that it works at all," Backyard added. "It might not be able to erase _either_ personality. Something like this has never been attempted before."

"We'll just have to test it now. Not like I'm gonna wait until New Year's." Spidey slipped the device into his pocket. "I'll take of things from here. You go report to your boss. And after that... maybe find a new one. A non-mad scientist."

Spidey ran down the street and back to where Gwen was waiting. They were away from the barricade and the crowd of people. With the chaos going on at the school building, no one would notice them or care enough to listen in on their conversation. Spidey explained the situation to Gwen.

* * *

><p>"So this was his 'master plan' all along," Gwen said as she examined the brain pedometer. "A part of me was sort of hoping that destroying Cletus was just a bluff, but with this he may actually pull it off." She handed it back to Spidey.<p>

"He'll use this on Cletus unless we use it against him first. It's sink or swim, plain and simple." He put the device in his pocket and looked towards the school. "The _problem_ is, how are we supposed to get to him?!"

"If you show him that you have what he wants, Carnage will probably just let you inside."

"That's what I did in the last hostage situation and he beat me. I need to _sneak_ in this time. I need to break his rules and take him by surprise... Ugh, but it'll take time to rip through that red goop and I don't think the cops are just gonna ignore me."

"Maybe you should switch back with Peter and we can think up-"

"There's no time to keep switching back and forth... Besides, _I_ can think of a plan! You think I can't? This is my brain too, you know."

Spidey sighed and thought for a few moments. "Couldn't you just distract the cops or something while I rush in?"

"Spidey, it would take a _big_ distraction," Gwen replied.

"There you are!"

They turned and saw Debra, Flash and Kong heading towards them.

"Are three extra people big enough?" Spidey asked.

"Don't even think about it!"

The trio stopped in front of Gwen and the person who looked like Peter. "Okay, Gwen," Debra started, "what exactly-"

Kong pointed dramatically and yelled, "The jig is up! You can't hide it any longer!"

All four of them turned and stared at him.

"I just... always wanted to say that," he answered with a sheepish smile.

Debra ignored him and turned back to the other girl. "Gwen... Actually, maybe we should have this talk alone," she added with a look at the brunette boy.

"I can't leave." He pointed a thumb at Gwen. "The warden always gets mad when I take off my ball and chain."

"Don't talk to them," she hissed. She was scared they would notice that this wasn't the same Peter as usual.

"Then he can just listen," Flash said. "You know something about what's happening to the school, don't you?"

"I don't know anything about that," Gwen answered calmly.

"But you know Carnage - the person who attacked us the other day," Debra said. "You called him by name and he responded."

"That's..." She struggled to think of an excuse, but words were failing her.

"You know something important," Flash accused. "And if you don't start leveling with us, we're gonna go to your police officer dad and tell him you're keeping secrets. Then you'll _have_ to talk."

Gwen kept her face composed, but internally she was panicking. She stopped thinking of how to lie to them and started thinking of how to stop them.

Spidey put a hand on her shoulder and smiled. "_I_ can explain."

"NO!" She looked him in the face and begged. "No, please, don't do anything! Don't-"

He put both his hands on her shoulders. "Stacy... _Gwen_... Don't worry. I will take care of this." He leaned over to her ear and whispered, "I'll protect Peter's secret. I promise."

Gwen was still nervous, but she nodded her head.

The person who looked like Peter turned to the investigation team and cleared his throat. "She learned about Carnage from me. And I knew because I'm Spider-Man. Stacy wants you to think this is a joke or a trick, but it's not, so don't listen to her deny it. I'm honestly, literally Spider-Man."

He turned back to Stacy and gave her the peace sign. "Okay, they know. And it's too late to undo it. You don't mind, right?"

Gwen gave him a perfectly executed Brazilian-style kick upside his head. He crashed to the ground.

"I should have known you wouldn't help!" She reached down and grabbed him by the collar. "_This_ is how you take care of things?! You _said_ you'd keep it a secret!"

"I didn't say forever," he cheerfully countered.

"You... You...!"

"Oh, give me a break, Stacy! This is an emergency!" Spidey broke out of her grip and stood up. "We have enough problems to deal with, so we might as well let them in on the secret and ask for help."

"There had to be a better way."

"I didn't see _you_ thinking of one. This is technically your fault anyway, Miss I-don't-know-anything."

"Uh, guys," Flash held up his hand. "Sorry to break up this little lovers' quarrel-"

"IT'S NOT A LOVERS' QUARREL!" they both said.

"-But can we get back to the part where Peter expects us to believe he's Spider-Man?"

"It's true though," Spidey said nonchalantly. A quick look around confirmed everyone else was too far away and too focused on the school to even notice their shouting. "As proof: Check this out!"

Gel suddenly appeared and wrapped around his right forearm, forming the glove of his costume. He shot a line of web directly into the ground. The trio stared at it.

"I feel like I'm watching a train wreck," Gwen mumbled to herself.

Debra took a step back and let the revelation wash over her. "Oh my gosh... I was right. I was absolutely right all along. Everything makes sense now! _THIS_ is why we couldn't find Spider-Man. We eliminated a suspect we shouldn't have!"

"Wait, no, no," Kong protested. "Peter can't be Spider-Man, because Mary Jane said she saw him and Peter in the same place at the same time!"

"She lied. She's in on it," Spidey explained.

Kong blinked. "Oh... But that still doesn't make any sense! You don't even like Spider-Man. You were on our team because you wanted to expose his identity. And saying stuff like you would punch Spider-Man in the face if you ever met him. Was that all just an act? 'Cause you deserve an Emmy for it!"

Spidey scratched his head with his still-gloved hand. "It wasn't exactly an act... It's kinda complicated and I don't even know if you'll believe me but... We're not the same person. _I'm_ Spidey, Peter is not."

The trio stared at him in confusion.

Spidey turned to Gwen. "Did he say 'punch Spider-Man in the face'?"

"I feel like I'm watching a train wreck burst into flames," Gwen mumbled to herself.

"Let me get this straight," Flash finally spoke up. "You're Spider-Man - the real Spider-Man - but you're not Parker. You just happen to look like him?"

"You're not a shapeshifter, are you?!" Kong asked.

"Yes!" Gwen saw a glimmer of hope.

"No." Spidey crushed it. "The body's the same. It's just the mind that's different. I'm a split personality. But I don't wanna talk about that, I wanna talk about-"

Gwen threw up her hands. "Why fight it?! If I can't stop this disaster I may as well control some of it."

Spidey slowly and calmly said, "I want to talk about the time _Peter_ wanted to punch me in the face."

"Later." She turned back to the trio. "Yes, I admit it. Peter has a multiple personality disorder and his other self is Spider-Man. We call him Spidey. No one's supposed to know - not even _Peter_ knew in the beginning - so please, please, please don't tell anyone."

"Oh, I get it!" Kong nodded his head enthusiastically. "It's like schizophrenia."

A moment of silence passed. Spidey's eye twitched.

"No... _Not_ like schizophrenia. Dissociative Identity Disorder. It's a totally different thing. I mean, I don't want to sound insensitive to people who really are schizophrenic, but why would you even think-"

"Spidey, let it go." Spidey turned his head away and pouted. Gwen continued. "You all know how Harry acts different in reaction to the people he's with. He calls them 'personas'."

They nodded. "Yeah, but that's not like this," Debra said.

"No, he and Peter are on opposite ends of the continuum. Harry intentionally changes his personality. Some people do it subconsciously. And sometimes, personas are so different and so strong, the brain can't consider them the same person... I don't completely understand it myself, but 'Peter' and 'Spidey' are different people. Please believe that."

"It sounds totally ridiculous," Flash said. "And yet, still easier to believe than the fact Puny Parker is Spider-Man."

"Carnage is a split personality too," Spidey said. "His other self is Cletus Kasady."

"The new kid? The wallflower?!"

Spidey shrugged. "It's always the quiet ones."

"Carnage is the enemy. But he's using Cletus' body to cause all this trouble. Cletus is just another victim," Gwen explained.

"That's why we don't want the police getting involved and blaming Cletus. Besides, they couldn't defeat Carnage anyway. This is personal between me and him... I mean, us and them."

Debra was quietly absorbing all of this. "Let me make sure I understand this... 'Peter' didn't know he was also 'Spidey' back when he agreed to join our team? So he doesn't remember anything you do?"

"Sometimes we remember stuff, especially if we switch while we're still conscious... I think Carnage remembers a lot of what Cletus does too, but not the other way around."

"If they could remember all of it, then you couldn't tell they were different people."

Debra meant it nonchalantly, but it struck a chord in Spidey.

"A-Anyway, I broke the rules to let you in on the big secret. I'll be glad to tell you _anything else_ you want to know when this is all over, but I don't have time to dawdle right now. I need to stop Carnage. So if you can help me sneak into the school, without Carnage or the cops noticing, I'll call us even."

"Sounds fair. And as a matter of fact," Debra mused, "we know the perfect way to sneak you inside."

That surprised Gwen. "Really?"

"Yeah, everyone's so focused on the main building, nobody will notice if we go somewhere else on campus," Flash added.

"Where else would we go?" Spidey asked.

* * *

><p>"A secret tunnelway?!" Spidey repeated.<p>

The group walked across the football field. The investigation team was leading Spidey and Gwen away from the school and towards the sports building.

"Why does our school have a secret entrance?" Gwen asked.

"Who built this school, Agatha Christie?" Spidey added.

"It's not _exactly_ a secret entrance. It's the entrance to an underground bomb shelter," Debra answered. "The building _was_ built during the Cold War, after all."

"That's when everyone was all paranoid about getting blown up even though nothing ever happened," Kong leaned down right next to Spidey's face and explained.

"Thank you, Mr. Know-It-All," he dryly replied.

Debra continued her explanation as they walked across the grass. "There's one entrance inside the school, in the boiler room. Then there's a tunnel that connects to the second entrance, which comes out here in the sports building."

"Is it normal for bomb shelters to have a front and back door?" Gwen asked.

"Of course. It's important in case one entrance got blocked by debris. They were probably planning on evacuating the students in case of emergency too. But like Kenny said, it was never needed so it simply sealed off and forgotten. It's not a secret _per se_, but not many know about it."

"It's supposed to be off-limits," Flash spoke up, "but the lock in the boiler room's busted and some people still sneak down there. It's a great hiding spot when you're ditching class."

Debra raised an eyebrow.

"N-Not that I would know... I just heard it from the other guys... Since I take my studies so seriously... now..."

Debra turned back to the building. "The point is: Carnage wouldn't know about the bomb shelter because Cletus Kasady never talks to anyone, so he wouldn't have blocked it off."

"Definitely the perfect way to sneak in. And you thought we shouldn't ask for their help," Spidey smugly told Gwen. She didn't respond.

The door was unlocked. The five teens entered the building and Flash quickly led them down the hallway.

"It's this way. _This_ entrance is still locked, but we can break past it easy, and then we're home free."

Flash stopped in surprise. The other four looked past him and saw the door was already open. A broken padlock and bolt cutters were on the floor.

"Did Carnage sneak out?" Kong asked.

"It was broken from this side, genius," Flash answered.

"Then... Did the police beat us here?"

"I don't think so," Gwen told him. "But then again, who else would _want_ to go after Carnage?"

"...Harry?" Spidey guessed.

No one answered.

"Well, it doesn't change what we have to do," Flash said. "Let's get going."

"You're not going," Spidey said incredulously. "I'm going in alone."

"What? Why?" he demanded. "That creep put my friends through hell. I have a score to settle with him!"

"Oh, and I don't?" Despite being significantly shorter than Flash, Spidey could look up at him with a decently intimidating stare. "In case you forgot, you slammed him with a _cinder block_ and it barely fazed him. Only a superpowered-guy like me can fight him."

"So, what? We help you out and then you ditch us?"

"I think Peter - I mean, Spidey - is right," Debra said. "If all of us rush in and something unexpected happens, there'd be no cavalry. It'd be better for us to strategize here as he sends us info on what it's like inside."

"So it's settled. You guys stay here and-"

"I am not staying," Gwen firmly said.

Spidey stared at her blankly for a moment. "Of course. It's too dangerous for this hulking football player, but not you... One second thought, you probably _are_ a better brawler... Still-"

"While you're keeping Carnage busy, _someone's_ got to show people this escape route, plus keep an open phone line with them," she gestured to the investigation team. "Besides, Mary's my best friend and if Carnage finds out she knows you, she'll be in a lot more danger than the other students. I won't leave her."

Spidey tried glaring at her, but Gwen gave him "The Look." He was no match.

He groaned. "Fine! You can come! But I won't be responsible for what happens."

"She's got you totally whipped," Flash muttered. "You sure you're not Peter?"

He grimaced.

Kong pointed at them. "We'll hold down the fort but you gotta call us the _minute_ you need help!"

"And be careful!" Debra added.

"Promise," Gwen said.

"Okay..." Spidey concentrated, and a few seconds later the bio-suit washed over his skin and clothes, forming his Spider-Man costume. "Let's go!"

Spidey and Gwen ran down the staircase.

_**To be continued...**_

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes<strong>: (10/25/2013) I didn't have a lot of free time to write this month, and to be honest, I think this chapter could have been a lot better. But I already have a plan for the rest of this arc and I wasn't going to change anything major this late in the game.

So now the Investigation Team knows the secret, since I just couldn't keep them clueless forever. It seems they believed Spidey too quickly, especially about the multiple personalities, but like he said there wasn't time to dawdle. They'll give him a much more thorough interrogation once the crisis is over and the surprise wears off.

**In Other News**: Congratulations to me! This fanfiction has exceeded 50,000 words! It's amazing to think how far I've come... and how long it took. The story's winding up for the big climax, so stay tuned.


	25. MC4 Cletus' Heart

"Be afraid of the world, for it is big and strong; and fear the demons within, for they are many and brutal; but..." -Carl Jung

_**MAXIMUM CARNAGE! Part 4 - Cletus' Heart**_

_What does it mean to be yourself?_

_To do what comes natural, without making a conscious effort?_

_As for me, when I'm..._

* * *

><p>Mary Jane woke up with a start.<p>

She was pinned to the wall. Her arms were stretched out wide and her wrists were tied up by red cords. Those red cords covered every inch of the walls, floor and ceiling like out-of-control ivy. And they pulsated like the veins of a living creature.

A young man was sitting directly in front of Mary Jane. His body was the same dark red color of the tentacles lining the room. He looked like a demon from the neck down, but his head was a normal human's. A calm, young face with curly red hair.

"You're finally up," he said with a relaxed smile.

She regarded him carefully. "...Carnage?"

"No," he shook his head. "Not Carnage."

"Then, you're Cletus?" Mary Jane was confused. "You got control away from Carnage?"

"Not exactly. The truth is... There never was a 'Carnage'."

Cletus Kasady stood up and paced in front of her. A bundle of cords trailed on the floor behind him, connecting his back to the overgrowth on the walls. He was the nerve center of the entire building.

"What are you saying...? Cletus, what's going on?"

He looked at her kind of sadly, like he pitied her. "Really? I really need to spell it out for you? My act couldn't have been that good... I was faking, Mary Jane."

"Faking?"

"I'm saying I've never had a split personality. I was only pretending to."

"That can't be true!"

"Don't be naive. The fact that I'm here, as Cletus, and I'm still holding you captive is proof beyond anything else."

Cletus slowly walked around the room, smiling to himself. He was proud of himself - proud of what he'd done. "I thought, even if I was caught, I wouldn't be blamed if I claimed, 'oh, it wasn't _me_, it was that _other_ person controlling my body.' Actually, I didn't really expect to fool anyone... But then I met Peter and Spidey. You guys already experienced the real thing, so you didn't even hesitate to believe me. I mean, why would the guy who _really had_ D.I.D. suspect that there was no such thing? It was such an unbelievably lucky break!"

"I can't believe this," Mary Jane shot back. "You're just Carnage, pretending to be Cletus, aren't you?"

"You're not listening!" Cletus shouted. "There _is_ no Carnage! There's no multiple personality disorder. It was all _me_, pretending to be two people. I was conscious of everything. Carnage isn't an Alter - just a role I played. You want to become an actress, so you should be able to understand that," he added with a smirk.

She was horrified. "Then... that robbery downtown, to lure out Spidey...?"

"That was me," he proudly replied.

"And stealing that suit from Oscorp's lab?"

"That was me."

"Trapping Gwen and the others on that rooftop... And then the break-in at Peter's house?!"

"Everything was me... I remember and was conscious of _everything_... You all fell for my act like the world's biggest suckers!"

Mary Jane narrowed her eyes.

After a moment she asked, "Why are you telling me this?"

"I got bored, so I'm dropping the act," he replied casually. "Like I said, I never planned for the split personality excuse to get me very far. I only kept it up because of Peter. I had a good laugh at his expense and now I'm moving on to the next thing."

"What's the next thing?"

Cletus smiled at her. "Think of it as the final boss of a video game. This school is the stage for a dramatic showdown with the resident superhero... Spider-Man is my final boss."

"Now I get it," Mary Jane said. "You want to fight Spidey. That's what this is all about. Is it supposed to be some kinda duel to the death?"

Cletus didn't respond. He just stared at her seriously.

"It _is_ a fight to the death," she realized in horror.

He stepped very close to Mary Jane. "I honestly kind of like you guys. You, Peter, Gwen, even Spidey. I wasn't _planning_ on killing any of you. I only wanted to have some fun. But you all know my secret identity. So you see..." Cletus locked eyes with her. There wasn't even a hint of a smile on his face anymore.

"I seem to have painted myself into a corner."

Scared as she was, Mary Jane wouldn't look away from him.

* * *

><p><em>What does it mean to be someone else?<em>

_To force yourself to say things you don't honestly think?_

_As for me, when I'm..._

* * *

><p>Spidey and Gwen walked out into the main hallway of the ground floor. The red gunk was everywhere. The building didn't look even remotely like a school anymore. It was more like the hive of an alien monster.<p>

But the sight of the people frightened Gwen much more than the scenery. Unconscious students and teachers were scattered all over the place. Some were slumped on the floor, some were pinned to the walls, but each one had a tendril stabbing them in the torso.

Gwen quickly ran up to one of them and checked his breathing. "They're alive... But..." She got out her cell phone and called Debra. "It's me. We got-"

She was interrupted by background voices on the other end. "_Don't hog the phone! We wanna hear too!_"

"_Me first!_"

"_Stop grabbing!_"

"_Just put it on speaker!_"

"_What button is that?_"

"_Give it back! I'll handle it!_"

This continued for a few moments. Gwen waited patiently, but not without some annoyance.

Debra's voice spoke again. "_There, you're on speakerphone now. Could you please start over, Gwen?_"

"...We got inside, but it looks a lot worse than I feared. The hostages are all unconscious, and each one has a tentacle attached. It looks like this red gunk is _feeding_ off them."

"_That makes a little sense_," Debra's voice replied. "_I imagine Carnage's suit would need some kind of sustenance before it could envelop an entire building._"

"_Try ripping the tentacles off!_" Kong said.

"_She can't just rip it off!_" Flash countered. "_What if that hurts them? Internal bleeding or whatever._"

"_Well, what is she supposed to do, just _leave_ it? What does Spider-Man think?_"

"Spidey? He's-" Gwen looked around, and saw Spidey walking off without her. "Hey, where are you going?!"

She ran up to him, but Spidey kept walking without looking back. "Carnage is this way. If I take care of the root of the problem, it'll solve everything else."

"How do you know he's this way?"

"Because of my Spider-Sense... It says this is the most dangerous direction."

They walked over the cords on the ground. One of the cords Spidey stepped on twitched.

* * *

><p>A cord attached to Cletus' back twitched.<p>

"He's here," Cletus announced. "I sense the bio-suit... But he didn't break the doors down. How did he get in...? No, that doesn't matter. If he's here, I should go greet him."

"Cletus, please stop this," Mary Jane pleaded. "There's no reason for you to fight!"

"There's plenty of reason."

"Not any good ones," she shot back. "When we first met, didn't you say that you wanted to know what kind of a person I was? Didn't you enjoy being with Peter and the rest of us, even a little bit? What was the point of all that if you're just going to end things like this?!"

"I did want to meet you," Cletus replied. "I wanted to know you better. All of you... But there's no more time."

Cletus calmly walked to the doorway, leaving Mary Jane mounted on the wall. At the last moment, he paused and looked back at her.

"One last thing," he said. "Peter and Spidey... Did they really believe me when I told him my story? Did they... trust me?"

Mary Jane stared at Cletus and answered, "I don't know about Spidey... But Peter trusted you from the bottom of his heart! He _still_ wants to save you!"

Cletus was silent for a long time. Then he smiled and nodded.

"Then that's fine... That's more than enough."

He ran out of the room.

Mary Jane struggled against her restraints. She pulled with all her strength, but the cords around her wrists wouldn't budge.

_I have to stop that fight_, she thought desperately. _I can't let him die!_

* * *

><p><em>What does it mean to be more than one person?<em>

_To not fully remember what you do sometimes?_

_But who uses your body and brain when you're not really you?_

_As for me... I'm... I'm...!_

* * *

><p>Spidey and Gwen ran up the stairs and through the halls. Then Spidey abruptly stopped and held out his arm to block Gwen. "He's here..."<p>

Cletus calmly walked through an open doorway. The red costume still only came up to his neck. He stared coolly at the two of them.

Spidey scanned him with his Spider-Sense. To his confusion, he only sensed danger from the boy's suit, not Cletus himself.

"You're different from usual," he muttered.

"Different?" Gwen asked.

Now Cletus was confused, but he recovered quickly. "Oh, that's right. You're not Peter. You're Spidey. This is the first time you've seen me when I wasn't acting."

"Acting?"

"I just finished explaining to Ms. Watson," Cletus said. "It's a little annoying to have to do it all over again... I lied to you about my split mind. I've been lying to you since the moment we met. 'Cletus' and 'Carnage' are the same person. There's no multiple personality - Just me."

"That doesn't make any sense," Gwen blurted out.

"It makes perfect sense. Don't you remember, Gwen? _You_ suggested turning me over to the police. But Peter and Mary Jane talked you out of it, because they wanted to save the 'good personality'. But there is no good version of me. It was all just an act."

"But then-"

"Hang on," Spidey interrupted her. "You explained it to MJ? She's awake?"

Cletus tilted his head to the doorway. "Yeah. She's back there. You should go wait with her, Gwen. Things are about to get pretty violent here. But don't worry, I promise not to harm either of you... until _after_ I'm done with Spidey."

Gwen glanced at Spidey, who nodded. Then she cautiously walked towards Cletus. But as she passed the boy-faced monster, he rammed his claw into the wall behind her.

"AAHHH!"

"STACY!"

Gwen wasn't hurt, but there was a large crater where she stood a moment ago.

"Haven't you learned by now not to trust me?" Cletus quietly asked.

Gwen ran the rest of the way. A second later she was out of the room.

"You...!" Spidey growled at his enemy.

Cletus spoke with an easy smile, "You're angry. That's a good thing." He spread his arms wide and brandished his claws. "This fight wouldn't be exciting if you weren't revved up."

Spidey and Carnage launched themselves at each other.

* * *

><p>Gwen quickly found the room where her friend was. "Mary! Are you okay?!"<p>

"I'm fine." Aside from still being mounted on the wall like a preserved insect. "Did the fight start yet?"

She ran over. "Yeah... Spidey's fighting with Cletus right now."

"We gotta break them up! Get me out of here!"

Gwen tried ripping the bonds, but they wouldn't break.

"There's a Swiss army knife in my right pocket," Mary Jane said. "Maybe that can cut it."

"Right!" Gwen reached into her friend's pocket and pulled out the red knife. She looked through the different gadgets. "Toothpick... Nail file... Here it is!"

She touched the blade to the red cord... then she stopped and stared at the Swiss army knife in her hand. "Why did you bring a _knife_ to school?" she asked sternly.

"Uh, well, I never actually used the knife part," Mary Jane replied defensively. "I only bring it to school in case I need to trim my nails... And, very rarely, to pick locks..."

"Do you have any idea how much trouble you could get-"

"Gwen, there's no time for that! We might be too late already!"

Gwen began cutting through her restraints. "Too late for what?" she asked as she worked.

"There's no time to explain, but Cletus... He's gonna do something horrible unless we stop him _right now!_"

* * *

><p><em>What does it mean... to be...<em>

_..._

_No... I don't care anymore..._

* * *

><p>Spidey had gone into Rage Mode. He and his all-black costume tore across the battlefield. His punches left gaping holes in the walls.<p>

Cletus, whose costume still didn't cover his head, deftly dodged each blow. He swiped with his scalpel-claws and kept Spidey away. It was a back-and-forth game of attack and evade.

"Are you even trying?" Cletus yelled.

The walls were crumbling down around them. There was hardly any distinction left between the hallway and adjacent rooms - it was all one large battleground. Thankfully, there were no other people in this part of the building to begin with. With his animal-like focus on the fight, Spidey couldn't have guaranteed their safety. Cletus moved his hostages to only the parts of the building he wanted them in. This area was for them - For their fight.

"Yaaahh!"

Spidey swung his arm. The black gel over it stretched out into a long pillar. Cletus didn't have enough distance to dodge the new type of attack. It slammed into his torso with the force of an elephant's trunk. Cletus was thrown against the far wall and made a large crater on impact.

An ordinary person would have been killed. But that suit - Protoform X - did not make Cletus ordinary.

He coughed up a little blood, but said, "Is that all you got...?"

"I just realized I don't know what to call you anymore. If you're not a split personality, why would you pretend to be one?"

Cletus peeled himself out of the crater and stood up straight. Except for the drops around his mouth, he seemed completely unharmed. "Sympathy. To earn your trust. After having fun as a villain, I could join your little meetings and learn how you were planning to fight back. You were playing in my hands the entire time."

"And how did you know Peter and I were split?"

"I didn't know. It was just a coincidence that you were the real version of what I was faking... A wonderful coincidence."

"You little brat... Do you have any idea how much this is gonna hurt Peter once he finds out? You totally betrayed him!"

Cletus was silent for a while. He kept his face perfectly composed, and then he said, "Hurting people is what I do... What I've always done... If you don't like it, then try and stop me!"

The cords on his back pulsated. The cords along the walls and ceiling pulsed with them. Suddenly, dozens of claws shot down from the ceiling and rained over Spidey.

Spidey jumped backwards. And he jumped backwards a few more times, twisting and squirming in between the claws and tentacles.

"You don't hate me enough!" Though he was calm, Cletus had to shout to be heard over the crunching floorboards. "That's why you're not fighting harder! Maybe I should start killing my hostages until you take this fight more seriously?"

The onslaught finished. There was a thick curtain of tentacles stretching from ceiling to floor. Cletus couldn't see his opponent - couldn't even tell if he was unharmed.

The claws retracted into the ceiling. With the battlefield clear, Cletus saw Spidey lying motionless on his back.

Cletus blinked. He was beaten just from that?

He took a few steps towards the fallen hero... Then a string of web suddenly shot from Spidey's wrist to Cletus' ankle.

Spidey got to his feet with a backwards somersault, in the process yanking the web-line and pulling Cletus off-balance. With his foot pulled out from under him, Cletus collapsed and landed awkwardly on the pile of cords growing from his back. The wind was knocked out of him for a brief moment.

In a battle like this, a brief moment meant everything.

Spidey leaped over, landing with a foot on either side of Cletus. He was directly above the other boy. And Cletus' head was still exposed and unprotected.

With all his strength - every ounce of his power - Spidey launched his fist towards Cletus' face.

Mary Jane ran into the room and shrieked, "_Spidey, stop!_"

His fist froze less than an inch from Cletus' eyes.

Spidey turned his head. He saw Mary Jane panting at the edge of the battlefield, with Gwen walking up behind her.

"Don't let Cletus fool you," Mary Jane pleaded. "You're fighting the wrong person... That's not really Carnage!"

He looked back at the other boy. Only in retrospect, Spidey realized Cletus made no move to protect himself in that last second. Cletus had shown no fear, but after what Mary Jane said, his lip was trembling.

"What..." Cletus said at last. "What are you talking about...? I already explained... over and over... There _is_ no-"

"Cletus," Mary Jane interrupted. "I said Carnage broke into Peter's house and you took credit for it."

"Yes. Because I did it."

"There was no break-in!" Mary Jane countered. Cletus' eyes widened in shock. "You took credit for something I made up. You _had_ to take credit for whatever I said, because... you don't really remember what you do when you're Carnage... do you?"

Cletus said nothing. He simply lowered his eyes.

Spidey looked down at him. "So... He wasn't pretending to have multiple personalities... He was pretending to _not_ have it? I don't get it."

Gwen sighed. "I should have explained it _before_ I rescued Mary. What was I thinking?"

"At least we got back here in time," Mary Jane added. "Though it's too bad Spidey couldn't figure it out on his own."

He blinked. "Huh? Wait... You mean _I_ was the only one here who fell for it?!"

"Duh. Did you forget about the Alter-destroying device?" Gwen spoke to him derisively. "Why would Carnage force Osborn to make one if he didn't need it? The part I don't understand is..." She looked at Cletus. "You _are_ Cletus right now, right? So why is the school still like this? And what was the point of this last-minute charade? Why did you want to fight Spidey?"

Mary Jane quietly said, "I think... I think Cletus wanted Spidey to kill him. Sort of like suicide by cop."

Spidey looked back to Cletus in shock. But Cletus still wouldn't make eye contact.

"_That's_ what this is about...? That's what _all of this_ is about...? You punk!"

Spidey reached down and grabbed Cletus by the collar of his costume. "If you got control of your body away from Carnage, then you should have turned the school back to normal! You should have released the hostages! But you... You took _advantage_ of what Carnage started for the sake of stupid emo urge?!" He lifted the boy up into the air.

"Spidey!" Mary Jane cried out.

"Don't stop me, MJ! Carnage may have started this disaster, but he's just as responsible for not ending it when he had the chance! Not Carnage - Him! In the end, you're just as bad as Carnage! You sacrifice other people, and play us for saps, just to get what you want! How do you know draining all these people won't cause permanent damage? And you... You almost _killed_ Stacy back there, just to taunt me! You... You...!"

Cletus looked at him with sad eyes. "Spidey... If you want to hit me... Hit me."

Spidey grit his teeth. Then he pulled his fist back. "You're asking for it!"

"Stop!" Mary Jane yelled.

"Don't!" Gwen yelled.

"I... I..." The costumed hero's hands trembled. "I... can't let that happen..." He lowered Cletus to the ground. "Cletus..." The costume changed from the black Rage Mode to the red and black default. Then the mask melted away.

"Cletus is my _friend_," Peter said as he looked into the other boy's face.

"Peter...?" Cletus said.

"Yes." Peter let go out Cletus and held his own head. He was still in his Spider-Man costume from the neck down. "I got control away from Spidey, somehow." He rubbed his temples. "Man... He really gets angry around you or Carnage..."

The two girls walked up to the boys. "Peter, how much do you remember?" Gwen asked.

He concentrated. "Most of it... I think... Seems like that's normal when we switch without losing consciousness."

Peter paled suddenly. He turned towards Gwen in a panic. "W-Wait! Did Spidey - Did he _really_ tell Debra and the others?!"

"Did he?" Mary Jane asked with casual interest.

Gwen pinched the bridge of her nose. "I feel another headache coming..."

Peter sighed deeply. "One problem at a time..." He turned back to Cletus. "How long have you been in control?"

Cletus looked away. "I don't know exactly," he said quietly. "I just suddenly woke up, in this suit, and the whole building was like this. I'm not sure why Carnage allowed me to come out. But I realized that this was supposed to be our final stand... Spidey was right. I could have fixed this, but I chose not to."

After some hesitation, Peter asked, "Did you really want me to kill you?"

Cletus nodded slowly. "I thought... if you thought there wasn't a 'good' personality to save, you wouldn't hold back... Carnage wants to 'kill' me so he can live on by himself. I want to kill him too, I just... don't care if I go down with him."

"Why would you...?"

Cletus slowly sank to the ground. Still wearing that demonic outfit, he pulled his knees to his chest.

"I've been lying to you since the moment we met, Peter. You told me everything, but I kept secrets from you. I've always known what Carnage's Master Plan was - That was lie number one."

He reached up and tugged on his curly red hair. The hair slipped off of his head. It was a wig. Underneath was light red stubble, hair just recently growing back after being shaved completely. Clearly visible across his head were long scars - left by surgery.

"Ever since I moved to this city, Carnage has been sneaking to Oscorp's labs so they can do tests on my - _our_ - brain. I was conscious for some of them - Carnage woke me up. Oscorp used the data as a blueprint to finish making Protoform X. This suit was literally built by our brain. That's why it's so advanced and why we can use it so well. Carnage also told them to use the data to find a way to erase me... He left messages telling me everything. He _bragged_ about how soon he'd be rid of me, and how he'd be able to do his chaos full-time. And when he stole the suit from the lab, I knew that I didn't have much time left..."

Peter sat down in front of Cletus. He felt like he understood something important about Cletus, even though, looking back, it probably should have been obvious a while ago.

"Stopping Carnage," Peter said, "wasn't the most important thing... It was the _only_ thing you cared about... You never really wanted to save yourself."

Cletus lowered his head onto his knees.

"I think Carnage first woke up inside me when I was seven years old, but I didn't know it at the time. I just noticed that the neighbors' pets were suddenly scared of me. They were injured too, like they had been fighting with other animals. But after a few weeks they were all killed. And it didn't stop with the pets. It seemed like I was always stumbling onto a dead bird or squirrel in the area. That's when I started to realize something was wrong with me.

"As I got older, I became aware that Carnage was living inside me. Around that time, he started hurting humans. He was subtle at first - they were just pranks, really - he didn't want to get caught. But it only got worse. The only reason he didn't murder people was so he could hold it over my head. He got more violent any time I tried to stop him... I didn't have a choice. I let him do whatever he wanted... But it only got worse...

"People around me are in danger. Growing up, that was an inescapable fact. The only thing I could do was to stay away from everyone. And it was easy to keep my distance. No one at school wanted anything to do with me anyway. My mom - I don't think she knows about Carnage, exactly, but she's still afraid of me. And my... my father... my... _f-father_..."

Cletus began trembling. Peter, Gwen, and Mary Jane could only watch in silence.

Eventually, Cletus looked up at the ceiling and said, "Carnage could have killed anyone in this building... No, he _will_ kill them, next time..." He winced. "It's been so hard, living like this, waiting until he makes me a murderer... I can't stand it."

"So you tried to make Spidey kill you today," Peter said.

"Not just today... I tried to kill myself lots of times. I've done everything from eating poison to jumping off skyscrapers. But no matter what I did, Carnage would take over and save our body." He looked down at his wrists, covered in that demonic costume. "I can't even cut deep enough to leave scars. He always stops me. Every single time. My own body and sense of self are out of my control."

"Cletus, people are equal," Peter told him. "You shouldn't have to die to prevent someone else's death. That's just-"

"It's not just about protecting other people," Cletus snapped. "I can't stand living like this. And I don't want to hear any speeches about how there's always hope or tomorrow's a new day because it doesn't apply to me. To me, 'tomorrow' is like a monster I can't escape from. It always comes no matter what I do. It's just another day of feeling guilty... and lonely... and powerless... And I have to live with all that every single day for the rest of my life... All I've ever wanted was to escape this life a tiny bit sooner."

Gwen spoke up, "So that's why, when you woke up today, you didn't release the school. And you made up that ruse to make Spidey hate you... You wanted him to..."

"Spidey was never going to kill me," Cletus said with a shake of his head. "The fact that Carnage didn't come out during the fight is proof of that. Even if Spidey got mad and beat me up, I was never in any real danger... I can't do anything. I can't even die on my own terms..."

Peter stared sadly into his friend's face. Cletus began crying. He was probably holding back those tears for a long time. He lowered his face and cried.

"Peter... You said you wanted to save me... So please, Peter... _Save me_... I can't face any more tomorrows like this..."

Peter was silent for a long time. Finally, he looked at Cletus and answered. "Cletus... Even if you beg me, I can't kill you."

Cletus sniffed.

"I'll kill you."

Everyone turned towards the new voice. A short way down the hall, past the destruction of the battlefield, Harry Osborn stepped out through an open doorway. His hair was dyed black again, and his earrings and flashy clothes were gone. He wore a plain coat and jeans.

"Harry?!" Peter jumped to his feet.

"Yeah, sorry," he said, without really sounding sincere. "I wasn't trying to eavesdrop. It's just that there wasn't a good place to interrupt before now."

Harry's voice and expression were serious. Cold. Almost heartless. This was a new face to Harry the others hadn't seen before.

"How long have you been listening?" Gwen asked, eyes darting from Peter to Harry.

He thought for a second. "Um... I think I came in at 'no one at school wanted to be with me'."

Peter looked down at himself. He was still wearing his Spider-Man costume from the neck down. Even if Harry _hadn't_ overheard everything, there was no denying it while he was dressed in that.

Peter groaned loudly. "So on top of everything else, now Harry knows my secret too... This is my worst day ever." When he looked back on it later, Peter felt selfish for being worried over his problems instead of Cletus, but it really was a big deal to him.

"Actually, Peter, I already knew you had a split personality."

Silence.

Peter lifted his head and stared at Harry deadpan. "Really?"

"Well, 'know' is a strong word, but I definitely suspected."

"How long?"

"First day of school."

"Dang. _That_ long?"

"I met you - I mean, the other you - downtown on the same day I met Gwen. It was only for a few seconds but you were _really_ different than when I saw you again in school. Add that to a few little things, and I figured it out more or less."

"How come you didn't say anything?"

"_You_ didn't say anything. You clearly didn't want to talk about it. So I let you pretend it was still a secret... Although, I had no idea the other you was Spider-Man. _That_ was a shock. You did an excellent job of keeping that part secret... Before today, I mean."

Peter grimaced.

"Did I explain everything? Good. Now let me kill Cletus." Harry spoke as casually as if he were talking about running an errand to the supermarket. He reached into his coat and pulled out a gun. It was the same kind of laser gun Peter saw Norman Osborn's assistant use at the construction site.

"Where did you get that?"

"'Borrowed' it from Oscorp. It's pretty scary how easy it is to break in there, even if you are the C.E.O.'s son. Now..." He aimed it at Cletus. "Please stand back, Peter."

Cletus calmly wiped his eyes. He didn't stand up. He didn't resist.

Peter resisted. He jumped in between Cletus and Harry.

"I _won't_ let this happen," Peter said firmly.

"Cletus wants it to happen," Harry replied. "He is literally _begging_ us to kill him. So for whose benefit are you keeping him alive?"

Peter hesitated. He looked at Cletus over his shoulder. Then he turned back to Harry and said, "Mine... I'll miss Cletus if he was gone."

Cletus stared at Peter.

"And it's for his sake too," Peter continued. "I still believe that there's a way to save him... _Really_ save him, without putting him out of his misery. And it's for your sake too, Harry. Are you really willing to become a murderer, just to stop Carnage?!"

"Yes," he said, still aiming the gun through Peter. "That's my penance! My penance for not stopping him when I had the chance. I ran away and tried to forget about the problem, and a lot of innocent people got hurt because of it. A man _died_ during the first hostage crisis! Even if Carnage didn't pull the trigger himself, he's a murderer already! And there might even be more victims none of us even know about! The monster inside Cletus can't be allowed to run rampant anymore! Now out of my way!"

"No. You're mad because Carnage killed an innocent person, but you're trying to kill an innocent person too. Cletus is _innocent_."

"That's debatable. Carnage was born from Cletus, after all."

"What about me, then? You'll have to kill me first to get him. Are you willing to shoot through your best friend?"

"Yes," Harry said without hesitation. "I'll hate myself in the morning, but I'll still do it. Unless you _get out of my way_."

Peter and Harry glared at each other. Harry's finger was on the trigger. Peter did not move.

Gwen suddenly ran in between them. "Harry, how much do you love me?"

Without missing a beat Harry said, "If you were a man, I'd turn gay for you."

"Do you love me enough to _not_ kill my friends? I want to save Cletus too, you know. I'd never forgive you if you killed him now!" She looked fiercely right into his eyes.

Harry hesitated for just a moment. Then he placed the gun back inside his coat.

"Peter, thank your girlfriend... And by 'thank' I mean without any romance or touchy-feely-ness whatsoever." And just like that Harry returned to his joking, fool-in-love persona.

Gwen sighed. "You really know how to cause trouble, Harry. We don't have to go through Cletus to stop Carnage. We have this."

She pulled the "brain pedometer" out of her pocket and showed it to the group.

"That's right, now I remember," Peter said. "The guys from Oscorp told Spidey that device could erase one side of a split personality."

"Really?! Geez, Gwen, you should have told us about that sooner!" Mary Jane cried.

"I didn't exactly have a lot of chances," she replied.

Mary Jane turned to Cletus, who still hadn't moved from his spot on the floor. "You see, Cletus? With this, we can-"

"I can't accept it."

"Huh?"

Everyone turned to look down at Cletus. "I can't find happiness if it's by myself."

The group was confused, except for Peter. Peter understood Cletus.

"You don't want to erase your other self, because you know _I_ can't erase mine."

"Mr. Osborn designed the procedure for Protoform X and my brain specifically. The Alter-Destroyer can't be used on anyone except me - this body. Even so..." Cletus looked up at Peter. "Even if you can't use it, Peter, it wouldn't be fair if I was cured and you weren't. I know how much you want to take your life back."

Peter kneeled down in front of Cletus. "Our situations are completely different."

He smiled weakly. "Yeah, I know. You don't have a monster inside you. But you still understand the fear of losing yourself. We're the only ones who understand each other... Dissociative Identity Disorder is incredibly rare. And among those cases, having only one other Alter instead of a group is even more rare. And on top of that, we both have 'super' Alters, even though yours is a superhero while mine is a supervillain... We're the same, Peter. You might be the only one in the entire world who's in the same boat as me.

"If I got out of that boat... even if you encouraged me to do so... if I left you behind, alone, and I started an ordinary, happy life for myself, I don't think we could stay friends..."

Peter wanted to say something like "We'll always be friends," but he didn't think he could say it with conviction, especially after his fights with Harry.

"We'd act like friends on the surface, but you might become jealous of my normal life, and I'd feel guilty for being the only one who got what he wanted. I'd pretty much be getting away with murder, too. We would lose our ability to emphasize with each other. And without wanting to, we might drift apart one day."

Cletus looked at him. "I'm fine with dying, Peter, but I don't think I could live without you. Not after waiting my whole life to meet you."

Peter thought carefully about his next words.

"Cletus... I don't think you understand me as well as you think."

He blinked. Peter continued. "I do want to get rid of Spidey sometimes. But even if I had the chance, I wouldn't take it. 'Spider-Man' does a lot of good things for this city. And Spidey's not a bitter half-person like Carnage, who does nothing but lash out. He has a wide range of emotions and is working hard to develop his own identity."

Peter looked down. "I... I don't know for sure if that's the right thing to do. A psychologist would probably say he needs to be reintegrated into my subconscious... But I didn't give Spidey his freedom because someone told me to. _I_ decided, for _myself_, to treat him as a separate person. I've been working hard to make it work, so if I stop now..."

Peter lifted his head back up and smiled, self-depreciatingly. "Then there would have been no point in everything I've done up 'till now. At least, that's what _I _feel like."

He reached over and grabbed Cletus' hands. "You are not me, Cletus. So don't try to copy me. And don't worry about what other people think. Don't even worry about what's right or wrong, or what's possible or not. If you're _you_, then think carefully and decide for _yourself_... What do you want to do?"

Cletus was silent for some time. He lowered his head and thought carefully. All sorts of thoughts and emotions he couldn't define were swirling around in his head, but there was one clear thing was shone through them, like a light at the end of the tunnel.

"I..." For a second it looked like he would cry again. But Cletus put his wig back on, hiding his scars, and showed Peter a brave face. "I want to stay friends with you. And..." He stood up straight. "I want to get rid of Carnage! Before he gets rid of me or anyone else!"

Peter smiled decisively and stood up too. Harry smirked too, just a tiny bit.

"It's probably impossible," Cletus continued. "It might be better if I just died quietly after all. But if I could, then I'd want to rip all his evil feelings out of my heart!" He glanced at Mary Jane. "Some people might say it's like murder to erase an Alter." He glanced at Harry. "Some people might say it's just therapy. But I don't care either way. I want to fight back against Carnage! I'm sick of letting him have his way while I do nothing but feel sorry for myself!"

"As much as I - for once - like Cletus' way of thinking," Harry spoke up, "we're all forgetting one important point. We're still not sure if the Alter-Destroyer or whatever-it's-called will even work."

"It's still worth a shot," Mary Jane said.

"There's one more thing," Gwen said. "To erase Carnage, we need to attach the device while Carnage is awake. Even if we switch him with Cletus, how can we stop him from switching back? If our timing is off..."

"I think I know how to solve that," Peter said.

"Already?!" Mary Jane was impressed.

"That's Peter for you," Gwen said. "He's so much smarter than Spidey..."

"Peter, do you...?" Cletus trailed off.

"Yeah." He nodded and, once again, smiled decisively. "I have a plan."

_**To be continued...**_

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes<strong>: (12/5/2013) So I missed my once-a-month deadline. I was really hoping to keep up the pace until the end, but...

This chapter owes a lot of things to a lot of things. The two main sources of inspiration were from Hizumi's talk with Ayumu in the penultimate volume of _Spiral: The Bonds of Reasoning_; and Hermit's talk with Sakuya at the end of _dot-hack/Quantum_. Throughout this story, I made Cletus similar to Hizumi in a lot of ways.

**Disclaimer**: I do not own _Spiral: The Bonds of Reasoning_ or _dot-hack/Quantum_.


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